Florio Poems | Examples

Civil Discourse

Let us deport-- with skill--
Let us discourse--with care--
Powder exists in Charcoal--
Before it exists in Fire.        
                                   ~ Emily Dickinson

Good words anoint, ill words kill 
                                   ~ Florio


It's said that sticks and stones break bones
   but words can serve as weapons too,
so wield with caution what you write
   let civil discourse have its due. 

A finely crafted turn of phrase
   will prove more winsome than a harsh
phillipic or a raging rant
   that drags one's soul down like a marsh. 

Are not our writings most effective 
  when our readers wish to read
our inner thoughts, instead of feeling 
  whipped by some ill-tempered screed? 

When I hear thunder's crash, I flee 
   from lightning's sharp, injurious ray -
I hear your thunder, not your words
   As though you speak a mile away.

I'm not promoting caged emotions;
   ire and outrage have their place,
but when the missile shrieks, there's few
   still left the message to embrace.

Written 21 Dec 2021