I admit it—I am a jewel thief. I take other people’s lines and statements for my poems. I love epigraphs and centos because I feel my poems are always a response. Maybe echoing others’ words help me feel less lonely in this world. Or perhaps I want to wear the brilliance of others around my throat and speak their beauty. In all statistical likelihood, all three are true. I am a bowerbird searching for blue and for the bright to build something that attracts another.
Take the line “But you know, when you throw salt into the void, it’s bound to land on something worth eating” as your first line. Go from there. If you decide to keep the line, use it as an epigraph and attribute it to Hieu Minh Nguyen. If not, you can still give credit by stating “after Hieu Minh Nguyen” if you wish. Good luck! I need to write my poem too.