Every year, I teach an Honors seminar called "Poetry Lab," in which we spend a semester writing in response to poems we find in the Poetry Center's collections. The class's focus is on experimentation and process over finished product. In keeping with that ethos, we usually spend our final class period playing a collaborative Q & A game I stole from the French surrealists, in which players must provide answers to questions they cannot see (for a full breakdown of the method, see my earlier blog post). The game is always funny and frequently profound. Here is a selection of questions and answers from the Spring 2026 seminar: 

Q: Why can't I breathe without you?

A: Midwest emo music. 

 

Q: Where did you grow up?

A: Walking down a long and windy road.

 

Q: What is a rainbow made of?

A: Pretty Woman. 

 

Q: What is your favorite creature?

A: Too much sugar before bed.

 

Q: Are aliens real?

A: I wore jeans that didn't quite reach my shins.

 

Q: What's on your mind, though?

A: I don't know! Go ask a leprechaun.

 

Q: What is the point of working when death lingers?

A: Too much to explore, not enough time.

 

Q: Why is heaven so far away?

A: Suspend your disbelief. 

 

Q: What is your dream job?

A: Green leaves shivering gently in early spring. 

 

Q: Why am I so hungry right now?

A: It just be like that. 

 

Q: What color do you feel represents your soul most?

A: This is Shrek's swamp. 

 

Q: How do birds sing & nest all at the same time?

A: I think it's just about letting go of the urge to think all the time. 

 

Q: Where does your heart live when you're not using it?

A: I saw a dog taking a bath in a metal tub today. But there was no water. 

 

Q: How do flowers know when to bloom?

A: Dancing in the moonlight. 

 

Q: Where did you live the first year?

A: Love is a many-splendored thing. 

By HNRS 195K, "Poetry Lab," Spring 2026: Allison Camper, Lizzie Cerotsky, Landon Chang, Lada Corcoran, Lily Figueroa, Marisa Freeman, Rejul Guru, Elsa Jackson, Sarah Kortemeier, Nadia Martinez, Harper Ostrich, Elena Periclos, Julianne Raebiger, Seth Rojas, Mary Schneider, Emma Weiss, and Liora Wilkins.