Curated original poetry
Select language appropriate to the audience. A school reading, community ceremony, and personal card require different levels of context.
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6 poems
by The Quiet Voice · 11 lines
Two minutes is long enough for a kettle to begin, a traffic light to change,
Read, listen and shareby The Quiet Voice · 11 lines
We entered with flowers, photographs, folded programs. We left with the same things
Read, listen and shareby The Quiet Voice · 11 lines
After the parade, flags return to cupboards, chairs fold into trucks,
Read, listen and shareby The Quiet Voice · 10 lines
At eleven, traffic pauses. A bus kneels at the curb. The cashier stills her hands
Read, listen and shareby The Quiet Voice · 10 lines
The wall does not say hero. It says names, line after line,
Read, listen and shareby The Quiet Voice · 11 lines
The letter was folded four times, soft at every crease. It mentioned weather,
Read, listen and shareReader guide
Select language appropriate to the audience. A school reading, community ceremony, and personal card require different levels of context.
A poem can look right on a screen and feel wrong in the mouth. Read your shortlist aloud, notice where the voice catches, and choose the piece that sounds like something you could honestly give or say.
Use the original byline and link when sharing. For a public service, program, classroom, or publication, check the usage note and preserve the poem's line breaks.
Start with the intended use, then narrow by tone and length. A private message can be intimate; a public reading usually needs a clear opening, steady pace, and images listeners can understand immediately.
You may share an EveryPoem link or use the built-in personal print and share-card tools. Republishing the full text elsewhere or using it commercially requires permission.
Yes. Published pieces are original EveryPoem editorial works or approved contributor submissions. House-voice profiles explain how collaborative editorial bylines work.