“The World is a Beautiful Place.” I still have this poem memorized. I recited it at school. I was definitely the only student reciting beatnik poetry. “Coney Island of the Mind” was my first true love in poetry form. I knew after reading it on my lawn the spring of my Sophomore year in high school that I, too, would be a poet.

I drove to San Francisco after graduation to see City Lights Bookstore, writing piss-poor poetry along the way, pitching tents like Kerouac. Laurence Ferlinghetti’s poetry will forever be modern, creative, shocking, and awe-inspiring. He always took risks with his writing, and I aspire to be as fearless as him.

Lawrence Ferlinghetti March 24, 1919- February 22, 2021