I had to read a poem to lower-elementary students today, and I picked one that was surely pitched a bit too high: Have compassion for everyone you meet, even if they don't want it. What seems conceit, bad manners, or cynicism is always a sign of things no ears have heard, no eyes have seen. You do not know what wars are going on down there where the spirit meets the bone. I read it to little kids because I figured, even if it flew over heads, it would still do some kind of useful work. Kids can detect passion in your voice, and if the poem moves you, it will likely stick with the kids. Even if the only thing that sticks is: Hmm...it's possible for an adult to be moved by a poem . This poem is plainspoken, but it does sneak in some poetic devices. "Meet" rhymes with "conceit"; "seen" is an echo of "sign," and "bone" is an echo of "on." All of that seems deliberate to me. Also, there are fun metaphors: interna...