I don't think of poetry as a 'rational' activity but as an aural one. My poems usually begin with words or phrases which appeal more because of their sound than their meaning, and the movement and phrasing of a poem are very important to me.

The genesis of a poem for me is usually a cluster of words. The only good metaphor I can think of is a scientific one: dipping a thread into a supersaturated solution to induce crystal formation. I don't think I solve problems in my poetry; I think I uncover the problems.

It is strange how a scrap of poetry works in the mind and makes the legs move in time to it along the road.

Three birds sit on a wire
One bird poops
Three birds shit on a wire

The Eskimos had fifty-two names for snow because it was important to them: there ought to be as many for love.

You fit into me
like a hook into an eye
a fish hook
an open eye