. >> we stand in the rain and a long line waiting at ford highland park for work.now what work is. if you're old enough to read this, you know what work is, although you may not do it. this is about waiting. shifting from one foot to another. feeling the light rain falling like mist into your hair, blurring your vision, until you think you see your own brother ahead of you, maybe ten places. when i was a young guy, working in these places and didn't see a way out as yet, and i certainly didn't think the way out would be poetry. >> brown: what were you doing? >> usually, five people would take an enormous piece of hot steel, which four of us would hold with tongs, and put it into a huge press. >> brown: so, what was poetry, then? i mean, where did the poetry come from? >> no one knows where poetry comes from. i had been writing poetry from the age of 14. it was just something i loved doing. i loved language. i recognized that i had a facility for it. my teachers praised me to the skies, which was wonderful. one thing i was struck by very young, in my middle 20s, ver