The poet, Mexican and male, won a spot on the show, The World’s Greatest Poet. This was a good thing for him because it gave him recognition and a desire to create. He hadn’t written a poem in three months. But when he received the invitation he wrote two poems. He was delighted. Afterwards, he had some wine and sat on his couch pleased.
It was then he received a call from his ex-girlfriend from two years ago. She said they had a child.
“Would you like to see him?” she asked.
The poet felt he shouldn’t say no. His girlfriend brought the child over and the poet smiled but felt unmoved. He was thinking of the show. He was worried he wouldn’t have the ability to create.
The poet saw the child several times for the next few months until he left for New York to be on the show. When he was on the show he was prompted to write about love. The poet fretted. He didn’t know what to write. He thought of his life and his ex-girlfriend and his child. He still didn’t know what to write. He wrote of the moon in desperation. He lost the competition. He went back to Mexico and to see his son. His girlfriend refused.
“Why did you write about the moon?” she asked.
The poet didn’t know. The poet cried. The poet realized he didn’t love and the poet realized he wasn’t a poet. He was a prose writer.
He applied to be on The World’s Greatest Prose Writer.