If you read a poem
through and through,
if you memorize by heart
if you can recite it word for word,
is it not that it is part of you?

If you read a book,
through and through,
notice
an alternate universe unfolding,
spilling all it's secrets to you.

If you read a book or a poem,
you are reading an author's craft.
A book is always handmade,
touched and kissed
by the author's heart.