Lake Shore by Billy Collins "The clich? is your enemy." ?from a handbook on writing It is not easy to admit this on paper, but the surface of the lake is sparkling very much like diamonds, and I hesitate to say the wind is whispering, but it seems to be doing something very close to that this morning. And if these clouds do not look like fluffy balls of cotton, I am not sure what they look like. On the other hand, the large, newly drilled hole halfway up this maple tree is where a woodpecker must have worked half a day just banging away at the good wood, wings tucked in, gripping the rough bark, eyes beady with determination, his red helmet on and his metal lunch pail hanging from a nearby branch. ... here we see the use of cliche with purpose. mG.