[mikech]

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but I cannot get a poem down on paper that doesn't seem stupid after I read it.

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that's a common problem. writing a good poem is exceedingly difficult; in my life i've written maybe half a dozen poems that i didn't hate. remember that poetry isn't just a confessional: you may have certain feelings you want to express, but an emotional expression rarely makes a good poem on its own; in fact it often drags a poem down.

w.h. auden once asked a young aspiring poet who came to him for advice why he wanted to write poetry; the young writer replied, "because i have something to say." auden's response was something to the effect of, "then you won't write any good poetry."

poetry is more about a love of language, the joy in manipulating words, the musical cadences of certain words strung together, etc etc. the emotional and/or intellectual content of a poem is almost a by-product. (not that i'm dismissing that content: my favorite poet, wallace stevens, wrote some of the densest, most "intellectualized" poetry ever; another of my faves, w.b. yeats, wrote some of the most heart-rendingly emotional poems, particularly concerning the great unrequited love of his life, maud gonne.)

anyway, none of this is probably of much help, but once upon a time poetry was the thing in the world i was most passionate about, so i figured i'd share a few thoughts.