comfort the afflicted and to afflict the comfortable

I recently attended a poetry reading at Georgetown University by Bruce Smith & Tracy K. Smith. During the Q & A, I mentioned Audre Lorde's famous line, "Poetry is not a luxury," and asked Ms. Smith how she connects her poetry to the world, and how she sees the world through the lens of her poetry. In response, she quoted Lucille Clifton, who said "I write poetry to comfort the afflicted and to afflict the comfortable," and said that she wished poetry was mandatory. Ms. Smith later wrote me a very sweet inscription in one of her books.

A good life has many moments in the presence of poems. Thank you, Tracy K. Smith.