Listen to the poem being read here: https://vt.tiktok.com/ZSdn6QjcC/?k=1

I pick it up, I feel its form 
I hold it in my hands, the warmth
Transfers slowly and I sense
The tingle of the words within 

I gaze at the lines upon its face
I turn it over, my eyes trace 
The tale it whispers all its own 
Its beauty hidden, as yet unknown 
The seeds of intrigue have been sown 
It invites me in, in subtle tones
We follow, I and my intuition 
On lightning wings, we race in!
Another stridently demands that I 
Feel its spine from end to end 
And then I oftentimes comply
As it tells its story by and by 

I leave my existence behind 
For a while I’m in another life
I go on voyages fraught with love 
With pain, with humor with suspense 
I journey on through these realms 
Sometimes laughing sometimes tense 
And then I will glance again
At the portal to the world I’m in 
Pausing my trip-in words 
The story wraps itself up, and I’m 
Whisked back into the world 
Where I’m dutifully marking time

I feel its form one last time 
I leave it with a wistful smile 
That Teller of a myriad tales 
Waits until I visit it again

* Title inspiration from the novel by Thomas Hardy of the same name