CLANDESTINE STUPIDITY

Hey, y’all.

For Day 29 of National Poetry Writing Month, the prompt is:

If you’ve been paying attention to pop-music news over the past couple of weeks, you may know that Taylor Swift has released a new double album titled “The Tortured Poets Department.” In recognition of this occasion, Merriam-Webster put together a list of ten words from Taylor Swift songs. We hope you don’t find this too torturous yourself, but we’d like to challenge you to select one these words, and write a poem that uses the word as its title.

CLANDESTINE INTELLIGENT STUPIDITY

By Farah Lawal Harris, 2024

intelligent stupidity,

college calculus textbook-smart,

head in a book, hands creating art,

nearsighted eyes not looking both ways before crossing the street.

inside kid, clandestine friendships,

advanced academic attention magnet,

stunning and didn’t know it,

believing dark skin wasn’t pretty.

intelligent stupidity.