A Little Like Rape
A Little Like Rape
by donal mahoney
This sylph came forward
from the second row
the second day of class
and asked if
I would edit her poem
so it would read
the way it should.
I told her straightaway
that even though
this was writing class
and I was the instructor,
I couldn’t edit her poem
and still have the poem be hers.
Editing her poem, I said,
would be a little like rape,
just painful in a different way
whether she understood that
yet or not.
Oh yes. I hope this really happened because I love conversations and moments like this. And truth.
K, so I really like this. I hope this happened because moments in time, and communication, like this is so freaking real and important.
And truth rocks.
That is the stupidest simile I’ve ever come across. Given the choice of having my poem edited or getting raped, I think I’d go with the editing.