Advice to a poetry teacher

A Student advices her teacher

Advice to a poetry teacher

My words herald a life lived
and notions that swell my heart,
in lines and rhythms and semi-colons
my most intimate secrets, my creative art.
Judge not then the content, for it is experience
spaced however un-neatly upon my page,
guide me though in form and structure,
punctuation and grammar blips forgotten by age.
Reprimand me for spelling errors
and misjudgements in rhyme,
find out all the weaknesses
that makes my poetry un-sublime.
Strengthen my vocabulary,
tighten my untamed hand,
give my poetry an art form
for all time to withstand.