It’s Smut
Sweet. Thin. I know, i.e., I
knew. Twenties. I—oh I—I
stew. I hint ewe. I oink-
oink: “Hi, sweetie.” Twin
Teens II. Wowie. Kith ‘n
Kin. To wet his wienie,
teenie with no kiwis,
we (I-we) tie hot skin in.
I knot, we tie. I win, she
whinnies, to wit. I eke:
“I won’t.” I seethe, I wink.
Two swine. I eek? I hint,
sweetie, I know I hint.
I know it when I see it.
Hi Friends,
Each line of Kevin McFadden’s sonnet “It’s Smut” is a perfect anagram of Supreme Court Justice Potter Stewart’s famous 1964 definition of pornography, “I know it when I see it” — meaning, McFadden uses all the letters and only the letters in that phrase to craft each line.
In celebration of National Poetry Month, I am sending out one poem per day for the duration of the month. To learn more about National Poetry Month, visit www.poets.org, the website of the Academy of American Poets.
Best,
Ellen