Poet Lucille Clifton Recalls a Life of Well-Chosen Words
African American poet Lucille Clifton's first book of poems Good Times was cited by the New York Times as one of 1969's ten best books, and she recently became the first black woman to win the prestigious Lilly Poetry Prize, which rewards lifetime achievement. Clifton talks to Farai Chideya about her life, legacy and plainspoken way with words, including wishes for sons:
For more information on Lucille Clifton's life and works, visit the Poety Foundation's archive.
wishes for sons
i wish them cramps.
i wish them a strange town
and the last tampon.
i wish them no 7-11.
i wish them one week early
and wearing a white skirt.
i wish them one week late.
later i wish them hot flashes
and clots like you
wouldn't believe. let the
flashes come when they
meet someone special.
let the clots come
when they want to.
let them think they have accepted
arrogance in the universe,
then bring them to gynecologists
not unlike themselves.
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