So, this girl the other night was talking about how she hooked up (you know, slang for had sex) with Justin Timberlake in Arizona a few weeks ago and had to sign papers saying she wouldn’t go to press or sue or something like that, but there’s something more important than celebrity/local gossip, and that’s National Poetry Month.

It’s that time of year, when you all get your daily (except weekends) dose of poetry bliss. Hang on kids, because you’re about to hook up with some powerful poems. I hope you brought protection.

“This Be the Verse”
by Philip Larkin

They fuck you up, your mum and dad.
They may not mean to, but they do.
They fill you with the faults they had
And add some extra, just for you.

But they were fucked up in their turn
By fools in old-style hats and coats,
Who half the time were soppy-stern
And half at one another’s throats.

Man hands on misery to man.
It deepens like a coastal shelf.
Get out as early as you can,
And don’t have any kids yourself.

Sure, this poem is Larkin 101, but I thought I start easy on you, let you get comfortable with the groove, before it starts getting rough. Pleasurably rough.