What theme do both poems have in common? “Pretty Words”
by Elinor Wylie
Poets make pets of pretty, docile1 words:
I love smooth words, like gold-enamelled fish
Which circle slowly with a silken swish,
And tender ones, like downy-feathered birds:
5 Words shy and dappled, deep-eyed deer in herds,
Come to my hand, and playful if I wish,
Or purring softly at a silver dish,
Blue Persian kittens, fed on cream and curds.

I love bright words, words up and singing early;
10 Words that are luminous2 in the dark, and sing;
Warm lazy words, white cattle under trees;
I love words opalescent,3 cool, and pearly,
Like midsummer moths, and honied words like bees,
Gilded and sticky, with a little sting.
1docile: yielding to supervision or direction
2luminous: full of light
3opalescent,: having a milky brightness
Public Domain
words
are birds
that arrive
with books
5 and spring

they
love
clouds
the wind
10 and trees

some words
are messengers
that come
from far away
15 from distant lands

for them
there are
no borders
only stars
20 moon and sun

some words
are familiar
like canaries
others are exotic
25 like the quetzal bird1

some can stand
the cold
others migrate
with the sun
30 to the south

some words
die
caged—
they’re difficult
35 to translate

and others
build nests
have chicks
warm them
40 feed them

teach them
how to fly
and one day
they go away
45 in flocks

the letters
on this page
are the prints
they leave
50 by the sea

Words can come alive.

Reading is fundamental.

A simple message can say a lot.

Books help you travel to exotic places.