If one learns to be concrete, one can write poetry with the best of them. In the first sentence, I have analyzed the situation and told the reader how he should react. In the second sentence, I have merely observed the situation without analyzing it, letting the picture evoke its own emotional response. The secret to writing poetry is to write concretely, letting the reader participate in the discovery of the poem. No one wants to be told what to think, but everyone wants to share the excitement of a discovery.
Poetry is participatory, it focusses on the feelings, on the co-discovery of truth.
It is generally not analytic detached generalizations, but emotional involved particulars. That does not mean poetry can not talk about universal truths, rather it permits the reader to discover the universal truth on his own. In order to be concrete, I usually have to use more words. The particulars are important and take longer to say. I may have to be repetitive, saying the same thing in slightly different ways to make sure that my point is clear.