Billy Collins - Everyday Moments Caught in Time

I've had a weird relationship with the poetry of Billy Collins since I was a freshman in college: I found some of it to be great, interesting, eloquent, disciplined, musical writing, and some of it not even to merit the appellation of poetry at all. And don't get me started on his Marginalia and the stupid egg salad... but I digress.

I don't know whether he really deserved to be the American Poet Laureate or whether we couldn't find anyone else at the time (can you tell I'm bitter?), but if there is at least one good thing I can say about the man is that he promotes poetry and writing wherever he goes, and so it is time that he finally made it to the TED stage and shared some of his writings, which are accompanied by some beautiful and artistic animation. Oh, and the last poem, the one that's not animated, is probably one that all of you parents are going to love :)

And if you need some lullabies or bedtime stories, maybe Samuel Jackson and Tim Minchin are what you've been looking for :)