'Show or Tell' by Donal Mahoney

​Show or Tell
 
Some poets show.
Others tell.
Poets who show
 
use metaphor, simile,
rhythm and stories
to paint a picture
 
readers can see
then decide for themselves.
Poets who tell
 
are linear folk who
mean well but yell
so readers won’t miss
 
the cure for society’s problems.
Their straight lines are neon
so readers won’t have to think.
 
 
Donal Mahoney