"Here are some specific hints that may help us find pleasure and meaning in reading a poem:

• "Always reread. We usually have to 'double-click' a poem to open it. We may have to read a poem many times to appreciate its point. Each rereading leads to more clarity and thereby increases our confidence as readers. When we stay with a poem, it yields more and more, something like staying with our own feelings to reach their authentic origins, motivations, and implications.

• "Mindfully notice the feelings a poem arouses in you. Then look at the theme and story in the lines, individual phrases, and images, and finally, in specific words. Return to the theme to see how all the words and lines express and illustrate it.

• "Remember that the ultimate goal is not to find out what a poem means or what question it answers. The purpose is to let something in the experience of reading the poem come into focus for you, not only mentally but in an embodied way.

• "It is important not to look for a lesson or to expect to be consoled by finding a silver lining, unless that is the poet's intention. More often, a poem simply tells it as it is. Its purpose is not to cheer us up but to tell the truth, and if that is cheerful, mazel tov. If it is not, amen.

• "Don't stop at the beauty of the words in a poem. Look for the meat, subject, mood, meaning, personal connotations — or any one of those.

• "When the syntax in a poem is skewed and the grammar is off, pressure is being deliberately placed on the words. This is meant to reflect and/or create an emotional intensity in the reader. The poetic diction increases the power of what a poem is trying to convey. The sentence structure is meant for artistic effect, not adherence to logic. Notice all this as a witness rather than as a critic.

• "Come to a poem in order to appreciate rather than to define. Poems often suggest rather than state, so do not put too much of your emphasis on interpretation.

• "When you find a poem difficult to understand, try writing it out in longhand or typing it. You may find that this process sheds light on what it is about. An alternative is to give up trying to understand and simply enjoy the images and rhythms, join into the mood, feel the feelings in the poem.

• "A joy in poetry is suddenly noticing likenesses we might never have imagined possible — metaphors make them visible. We begin to see how all things can commingle or even become one. For instance, love and wind do not seem related. But a metaphor describing our uniquely shaky bond with someone shows the two words can indeed fit together: 'Our love is a bargain with the wind.' Look for metaphors and appreciate their power to help us understand interconnectedness.

• "If you are especially drawn to a poem and find a lot in it, write your own poem in response to it or as an extension of it in accord with your own life experience.

• "Try writing a poem that copies the style of a poet you especially like or admire. This exercise helps you understand a poet better. In addition, you learn to write in a way that pleases you and shows you the scope of your own skill."