itinerant musicians came to our village. made me laugh, what we wear felt unfull. after that i rushed to write in fumbling lines why we should care about a child, and found the words would seldom flow, then turned to simpler themes, a possibility, mama as a nurse, a sight of d.c. with, a song of whales, a possum hunt, a battle prayer. i learned from poetry that art is best derived from artless things. that mysteries might be explored and understood from that which springs most freely from mind and heart. >> as a teenager, i began to hear a lot about this poetic figure who was running for president in the united states. he quoted bob dylan, he campaigned with the allman brothers. you got the feeling if his hair