A poem on the other side of a receipt

Source A: an original imagined proposal by a poet for a small arts festival.

I would like participating shops to offer a short poem on the back of a receipt. A poem encountered between the ordinary decisions of a day might reach someone who would never choose a poetry evening. The words would not have to announce that a special kind of reader was required.

The receipt interests me because it already travels. It is folded into a pocket, taken home or used to remember where something was bought. A few lines might acquire an unexpected second reading beside that record. I am not claiming that every customer will treasure them. Most printed words pass without becoming important, and poetry cannot demand a different guarantee.

The offer should be optional. A customer who wants only the transaction should receive it without a speech about missing an opportunity. My hope is for an encounter which someone may choose to continue, not for a small compulsory lesson at the till.

Source B: an original imagined response from a shop assistant.

I like the idea of somebody discovering a poem while buying ordinary things. I would prefer, however, to keep the receipt for the information it is meant to provide and offer a separate poem card beside it. Customers sometimes return because they cannot find a date, a price or an item. I do not want another printed feature to make that search less clear.

There is also the work of explaining the festival. A small invitation at the counter would be manageable. Asking staff to describe a different poem to every person would change the queue and turn a pleasant extra into another task to complete quickly.

Let customers take the card if they want it. A separate piece of paper may feel less surprising to the poet, but it gives the reader something they can choose without asking the person waiting behind them to share the same interest.

Compare how Sources A and B think a shop could introduce customers to poetry.