A Poem That Will Make You Smile... written by ben bussewitz; enjoy all!

ben bussewitz

New York University-- Masters in Fine Arts, Candidate (Poetry Track)

Poetry 701

21 September 2025

The Light You Exude

a poem written by ben bussewitz

dedicated to Miss. Taylor Alison Swift

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..

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       every time I see

you smile, my happiness is multiplied. i’ll

plant a field of watermelons if

watermelons make you smile. i’ll balance

a large bucket of spring water on my head

and carry it across the field to satisfy your

thirst. i’ll fly us in a propeller airplane

around the universe, land it outside of

reality, and pitch a tent where all that

exists is you, me, and our dog, if you feel

like a weekend away. i will take you on a

journey by sea to istanbul, if you feel like

renaming a city.

we’ll declare it “constantinople.” if you

would like to have mother of pearl,

emeralds, and alexandrite, i will entertain the 

merchants on the silk road with my banjo

and guitar and we will accumulate many

riches. if you would like to spend a few

years by the ocean, i will build a house on

the beach that can withstand any storm.

on chilly nights i will make fires and cover

you in blankets. i will put a rocking chair in

the living room and a bench swing near the

pebble path overlooking the cliffs and the

lagoon. i will find you some meteorites. i

will build birdhouses with seashells,

meteorites, and wax. i will cover a mountain

with birdbaths so when we climb it birds

will be surrounding us in all directions.

when we get to the top of the mountain,

we’ll hold hands as the birds carry us with

their beaks through the clouds to egypt and

land us on a pyramid. you will slide down

the pyramid, while sitting on my back. (i

will be a human sled for you.) after living

by the nile for awhile,

we will be thirsty for the ocean. we

will start a colony on gavdos with a

rainbow palace and our colony will

transcend every civilization that came

before us.

we will never leave the island because it

will be the best place on Earth. we will

send telegraphs to constantinople

explaining our inventions and

discoveries.

i will discover a new constellation. you will discover

an ocean on the moon. i will invent a way of

speaking with animals. you will invent new species

of animals. the people in frangokastello will sail to

our island, fill their boats with our animals, breed

your creations on crete, and crete will be forever

known as “the land of talking animals.” there will be

talking animals in constantinople too, but

constantinople will keep the name constantinople.

we will broadcast radio shows across crete for all the

people and all the animals to hear. as these things

happen, i hope they will make you smile. i want these

things to happen because i think they would make you

smile.