contemporary and classic poems from poetryfoundation.org

8/10/2019 Contemporary and Classic Poems From Poetryfoundation.org

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Pound

Afterimages

BY AUDRE LORDE

I

However the image enters

its force remains within

my eyes

rockstrewn caves where dragonfish evolve

wild for life relentless and ac!"isitive

learning to s"rvive

where there is no food

my eyes are always h"ngry

and remem#ering

however the image enters

its force remains$

A white woman stands #ereft and em%ty

a #lack #oy hacked into a m"rdero"s lesson

recalled in me forever

like a l"rch of earth on the edge of slee%

etched into my visions

food for dragonfish that learn

to live "%on whatever they m"st eat

f"sed images #eneath my %ain$

II

&he 'earl River floods thro"gh the streets of (ackson



A )ississi%%i s"mmer televised$

&ra%%ed ho"ses kneel like sinners in the rain

a white woman clim#s from her roof to a %assing #oat

her fingers tarry for a moment on the chimney

now awash

tearless and no longer yo"ng she holds

a tattered #a#y*s #lanket in her arms$

In a flickering afterimage of the nightmare rain

a micro%hone

thr"st "% against her flat #ewildered words

+we ,est come from the #ank yestiddy

#orrowing money to %ay the income ta-

now everything*s gone$ I never knew

it co"ld #e so hard$.

Des%air weighs down her voice like 'earl River m"d

caked aro"nd the edges

her %ale eyes scanning the camera for hel% or e-%lanation

"nanswered

she shifts her search across the watered street dry/eyed

+hard #"t not this hard$.

&wo tow/headed children h"rl themselves against her

hanging "%on her coat like mirrors

"ntil a man with ham/like hands %"lls her aside

snarling +0he ain*t got nothing more to say1.

and that lie hangs in his mo"th

like a shred of rotting meat$

III

I inherited (ackson )ississi%%i$

2or my ma,ority it gave me Emmett &ill

his 34 years %"ffed o"t like #r"ises

on %l"m% #oy/cheeks



his only )ississi%%i s"mmer

whistling a 53 g"n sal"te to Di-ie

as a white girl %assed him in the street

and he was #a%ti6ed my son forever

in the midnight waters of the 'earl$

His #roken #ody is the afterimage of my 53st year

when I walked thro"gh a northern s"mmer

my eyes averted

from each corner*s %hotogra%hies

news%a%ers %rotest %osters maga6ines

'olice 0tory 7onfidential &r"e

the avid insistence of detail

%retending insight or information

the length of gash across the dead #oy*s loins

his grieving mother*s lamentation

the severed li%s how many #"rns

his go"ged o"t eyes

sewed sh"t "%on the screaming covers

lo"der than life

all over

the veiled warning the secret relish

of a #lack child*s m"tilated #ody

fingered #y street/corner eyes

#r"ise "%on livid #r"ise

and wherever I looked that s"mmer

I learned to #e at home with children*s #lood

with savored violence

with %ict"res of #lack #roken flesh

"sed cr"m%led and discarded

lying amid the sidewalk ref"se

like a ra%ed woman*s face$



A #lack #oy from 7hicago

whistled on the streets of (ackson )ississi%%i

testing what he*d #een ta"ght was a manly thing to do

his teachers

ri%%ed his eyes o"t his se- his tong"e

and fl"ng him to the 'earl weighted with stone

in the name of white womanhood

they took their aro"sed honor

#ack to (ackson

and cele#rated in a whoreho"se

the do"#le rit"al of white manhood

confirmed$

I8

+If earth and air and water do not ,"dge them who are

we to ref"se a cr"st of #read9.

Emmett &ill rides the crest of the 'earl whistling

5: years his ghost lay like the shade of a ra%ed woman

and a white girl has grown older in costly honor

;what did she %ay to never know its %rice9<

now the 'earl River s%eaks its m"ddy ,"dgment

and I can withhold my %ity and my #read$

+Hard #"t not this hard$.

Her face is flat with resignation and des%air

with ancient and familiar sorrows

a woman s"rveying her cr"m%led f"t"re

as the white girl #esmirched #y Emmett*s whistle

never allowed her own tong"e

witho"t %ower or concl"sion



"nvoiced

she stands adrift in the r"ins of her honor

and a man with an e-ec"tioner*s face

%"lls her away$

=ithin my eyes

the flickering afterimages of a nightmare rain

a woman wrings her hands

#eneath the weight of agonies remem#ered

I wade thro"gh s"mmer ghosts

#etrayed #y vision

hers and my own

#ecoming dragonfish to s"rvive

the horrors we are living

with tort"red l"ngs

ada%ting to #reathe #lood$

A woman meas"res her life*s damage

my eyes are caves ch"nks of etched rock

tied to the ghost of a #lack #oy

whistling

crying and frightened

her tow/headed children cl"ster

like little mirrors of des%air

their father*s hands "%on them

and so"ndlessly

a woman #egins to wee%$

A"dre Lorde +Afterimages. from The Collected Poems of Audre Lorde$ 7o%yright > 3??@ #y A"dre

Lorde$ Re%rinted with the %ermission of 7harlotte 0heedy Literary Agency and =$ =$ orton

7om%any Inc$ www.nortonpoets.com$

0o"rceC The Collected Poems of Audre Lorde ;=$ =$ orton and 7om%any Inc$ 3??@<

http://www.nortonpoets.com/

http://www.nortonpoets.com/



A self/styled #lack les#ian mother warrior %oet writer A"dre Lorde dedicated #oth her life $ $ $

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MORE POEMS BY AUDRE LORDE

A oman Spea!s

"anging #ire

$e%er to Dream of Spiders

&oa'

Sisters in Arms

MORE »

RELA(ED

More Socia' &ommentar) Poems

More #ree *erse Poems

--------

"e'sin!i indow

BY ROBER& 7REELEY

for Anselm Hollo

o o"t into #rightened

s%ace o"t there the fainter

yellowish %lace it

makes for eye to enter o"t

to greyed %en"m#ra all the

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way to tho"ghtf"l searching

sight of all #eyond that

solid red #oth #rick and seeming

metal roof or higher #lack

#eyond the genial slo%e I

look at daily ho"se to% on

my own way "% to heaven$

F

0ame roof lightGs gone

down #ack of it #ehind

the crying end of day +I

need something to do. itGs

#een again those other

things whatGs o"t there

sodden edge of seaGs

#ay cityGs graveyard %ark

deserted flattened as%ect

leaves gone colored fall

to sidewalk street the end

of all these days #"t

still this regal light$

F

&rees stri%%ed rather shed

of leaves the #lack solid tr"nks "%

to fi#ro"s mesh of smaller

#ranches it is weatherGs window

weatherGs %artic"lar echo here

as if this %lace had #een once



now vacant a door that had had

hinges sw"ng in airGs %ec"liar

em%tiness greyed sl"m%ed elsewhere

as%halt #lank of sidewalks line of

linearly a#sol"te #lack metal fence$

F

Old sky freshened with clo"d #"lk

slides over frame of window the

shadings of softened greys a light

of air "% o"t of this dense high

str"ct"red enclos"re of #"ildings

to% or %"shed "% flat of #ricked roof

frame I love I love the safety of

small world this door frame #ack

of me the %anes of sim%le glass yet

airy "% swee% of #irch trees sit in

flat #elow all designation declaration

here as clo"ds move so sim%ly away$

F

=indows now lit close o"t the

"%%er dark the nightGs a face

three eyes far fainter than

the day all faced with light

inside the room makes eye re/

flective see the common world

as one again no o"tside coming

in no more than walls and %ost/

card %ict"res %lace faces across



that ca"tio"s dark the tree no

longer seen more than #lack edge

close #ranches somehow still #etween$

F

He was at the edge of this

reflective echo the words #lown

#ack in air a #"##le of s"ddenly

a%%arent %erson who walked to

sit down #y the familiar #rook and

tho"ght a#o"t his fading life

all +fading life. in trem"lo"s airy

%ers%ect saw it hover in the s"rface

of that moving darkness at the edge

of s"nGs %assing waterGs s"dden de%th

his own handsG knotted s"rface the

so"nding in himself of some other$

F

One forty five afternoon red

car %arked left hand side

of street no disting"ishing

feat"re still wet day a #icycle

across the way a green door/

way with arched "%%er window

a #ackyard edge of #ack wall

to enclosed alley low down small

windows and two other cars green

and #l"e %arked too and miles

and more miles still to go$



F

&his early still s"nless morning when a chairGs

creak translates to catGs cry a #lackness still

o"t the window might #e a%%arent night when the

ho"se still slee%ing #ehind me seems a #ag of

immense em%ty silence and I feel the children

still #reathing still shifting their dreams an

enigma will soon arrive here and the loved one

centers all in her heavy slee%ing arm o"t the

leg %"shed down #edclothes this #ody "nseen "n/

known %laced o"t there in night I can feel all

a#o"t me still sitting in this small s%are %ool of

light watching the letters the words try to s%eak$

F

7lassic em%tiness it

sits o"t there edge of

hierarchic roof to% it

marks with acid fine edge

of a%%arent difference it

is there here here that

sky so "% and o"t and where

it wants to #e no #irds no

other thing can for a

moment distract it #e

#eyond its sim%le s%ace$

Ro#ert 7reeley +Helsinki =indow. from Selected Poems of Robert Creeley $ 7o%yright > 3??3 #y the

Regents of the University of 7alifornia$ Re%rinted with the %ermission of the University of 7alifornia

'ress www.ucpress.edu$

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0o"rceC Selected Poems ;3??3<

Once known %rimarily for his association with the gro"% called the +Black )o"ntain $ $ $ MORE »

MORE POEMS BY ROBER( &REELEY

Before Parting

BY ALERO 7HARLE0 0=IBURE

A month or twain to live on honeycom#

Is %leasant #"t one tires of scented time

7old sweet rec"rrence of acce%ted rhyme

And that strong %"r%le "nder ,"ice and foam

=here the wineGs heart has #"rst

or feel the latter kisses like the first$

Once yet this %oor one time I will not %ray

Even to change the #itterness of it

&he #itter taste ens"ing on the sweet

&o make yo"r tears fall where yo"r soft hair lay

All #l"rred and heavy in some %erf"med wise

Over my face and eyes$

And yet who knows what end the scythd wheat

)akes of its foolish %o%%iesG mo"ths of red9

&hese were not sown these are not harvested

&hey grow a month and are cast "nder feet

And none has care thereof

As none has care of divided love$





I know each shadow of yo"r li%s #y rote

Each change of love in eyelids and eye#rows

&he fashion of fair tem%les trem"lo"s

=ith tender #lood and colo"r of yo"r throat

I know not how love is gone o"t of this

0eeing that all was his$

LoveGs likeness there end"res "%on all theseC

B"t o"t of these one shall not gather love$

Day hath not strength nor the night shade eno"gh

&o make love whole and fill his li%s with ease

As some #ee/#"ilded cell

2eels at filled li%s the heavy honey swell$

I know not how this last month leaves yo"r hair

Less f"ll of %"r%le colo"r and hid s%ice

And that l"-"rio"s tro"#le of closed eyes

Is mi-ed with meaner shadows and waste care

And love kissed o"t #y %leas"re seems not yet

=orth %atience to regret$

---

After #rost

BY ROBER& 7REELEY

He comes here

#y whatever way he can

not too late

not too soon$

He sits waiting$

He doesnGt know

why he sho"ld



have s"ch a %atience$

He sits at a ta#le

on a chair$

He is comforta#le

sitting there$

o one else

in this room

no others no e-%ectations

no so"nds$

Had he walked

another way

wo"ld he #e here

like they say$

Ro#ert 7reeley +After 2rost. from Windows$ 7o%yright > 3??J #y Ro#ert 7reeley$ Re%rinted with

the %ermission of ew Directions '"#lishing 7om%any www.wwnorton.com+nd+we'come.,tm$

Adu't

BY RAY OKALEK

Everything was the a%%le and the glass of tea$

&he mo"ntain the mold the a%ron on the grandmother

the neck of a #rown #a#y holding its tiny head

to get rid of the #lack #ees$

&his is the end of a #ad cent"ry

the o%ening of a door that was never #"ilt into the chest$

A vol"me of lo"d wires coming o"t of the gro"nd$

)y grandfather rising from fifty/fo"r years of death to see me$

&he instr"ment carved o"t of #one$

http://www.wwnorton.com/nd/welcome.htm





A lock of hair from a famo"s seventeenth/cent"ry %oet$

&he disintegrating #i#le wishing it was another #ook$

A hanging arm swee%ing the water o"t of the way$

)y memory of flying thro"gh the t"nnel that came o"t of nowhere$

A dog with wings and a cat with magic$

&he sentiment and the sweat$

&he #l"e chest of the working man and

the #are ankle of a yo"ng girl who drank #eer$

&he shadow of a yo"ng #oy named 7arlos and

the #are sho"lders of a yo"ng girl who whis%ered$

&he h"nger of an older #oy named (osM$

&he hard work of a #rother named RamNn with

a closeness and a disagreement among them$

A torn %air of work %ants and

a stiff and m"ddy %air of gloves$

A %ocket with two dollars cr"m#led inside$

A #are foot r"##ing the #are #ack of a yo"ng girl$

&he fo"rth can of #eer$

&he farmho"se that #elonged to the family

and the chickens that were killed for food$

&he cact"s garden that killed two men when they fell in

and the %ieces of green cact"s that made them dream$

&he green ,"ice that started the earth!"ake

the cr"shed flesh of cact"s on their tong"es

and its swelling that made them dream$

A garden hose washing away the #lood$

&he s%arrow hovering over the trash can and

the #ack alley stinking of dog shit and dr"nken men$

2alling feathers inter%reted for what they #ring$



A ch"rch ne-t door f"ll of sermons and howling #lack faces$

&he corner of the ho"se where a yo"ng #oy went to hide$

A single strand of hair fo"nd in a high school year#ook

the forgotten idea that hiding it in there wo"ld lead to a different life$

&he %iano wo"nded #y stones falling o"t of the cottonwood$

&he willow tree s%reading over the entire front yard

and the tiny white #alls of g"m that fell o"t of it one day$

&he smell of shadows trains h"mor t"m#leweeds

ice em%ty %arking lots one or two torn knees

a #ase#all glove the first g"y to cross the finish line

the fear the dread and the skill of esca%ing

so no one wo"ld start a list of smells$

2ear melted the memory of a lost #oy$

&he old ho"se the rosary aro"nd the neck

the cr"shed dog in the road

a s"dden calling from #ehind to warn him

to come in and #e still$

=ho recalls how this ended when the men

#"ilt their shi%s and invaded to change the o"tcome9

&he right to cry o"t and wait a whole cent"ry$

&he em#ers the lone %iano the oil lam%s

damaged #y a dream$

&he am#ition in the s%ine$

=ho will insist on ta%%ing the window to show

how easy it is to delay the ne-t h"ndred years9

Ray on6ale6 +Ad"lt. from Consideration of the Guitar !ew and Selected Poems" 7o%yright >

5JJ4 #y Ray on6ale6$ Re%rinted #y %ermission of BOA Editions Ltd$

0o"rceC Consideration of the Guitar !ew and Selected Poems ;BOA Editions Ltd$ 5JJ4<



&he work of award/winning %oet and editor Ray on6ale6 is ine-trica#ly linked to his )e-ican $ $ $

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(,e Magnets

Rai'road #ace

Ratt'esna!es "ammered on t,e a''

And (,ere ere Swa''ows

RELA(ED

More &)c'e of Life Poems

More Re'ations,ip Poems

More Socia' &ommentar) Poems

Re%ort a 'ro#lem

1

Lawrence Ferlinghetti 2/2010

AT SEA for Pablo Neruda

The sea through the trees

distant shining

The dar foreground

a stone wall with lichenAnd the bone-white beach stretching awa!

An old salt

sits staring out at the sea

A wind swa!s the "al#s

infre$uentl!









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Another da! "re"ares

for heat and silence

A s#all "lane bu%%ing lie a fl!

disturbs the s!

The air eats itFar out on the slu#bering sea

a trawler cree"s along

The wind fro# the south blows the bait in the fish&s #outh

The !awning sea

swallows the trawler

The lichen li'es on in its 'olcanic stone

taciturn

eternal

awaiting its turn in the turn of the sun

2 Ne'er will ( return here

ne'er again

breathe this wind

on this far run in the reaches of #orning

where the sea whis"ers

"atience and saltThe sun

scorches the s!

and dro"s lie a burnt-out #atch into night

And ( a# an ani#al still

"erha"s once a bird a halc!on

who #aes its nest at sea

on #! little flight across

the little chart of #! e)istence

Life goes on

full of silence and cla#or in the gre! cities

in the far bourgs

in the white cities b! the sea where ( go on

writing #! life

in neither blood nor wine

( still await an e"i"han!



b! the "retri-dish of the sea

where all life began

b! swi##ing*ut it&s ti#e now

to gi'e an accounting of e'er!thing

an e)"lanation of e'er!thing such as

wh! there is darness at night

E'er!where the sea is rising+Flood tide and the heron&s haunted cr!,

A# ( to be drowned

with the rest of the#

all the ani#als of earth washed awa! in ocean

#otherer and #oitherer

in this tre#endous #o#ent

of wondrous sea-change as our little world disa""ears

in a tre#or of ocean and fear to the #ur#ur

of the #iddle #ind of A#erica

as i#beciles in necties

dro" fro# the trees. No #atter then

if ( end u"

in a house of insurgents on the A'enida de los (nsurgentes

or shoeless on *oston o##on

or cast-u" clueless in #! great ncle sir&s

beach hut

in St3 Tho#asPardon #! conduct then

if ( can&t gi'e !ou

an! final word4

a final unified theor! of e)istence-- all thought subsu#ed

in one great thought

+uuto"ian 'ision,5u#ans with all their 'oices

as #!riad as

the s!llables of the sea ha'e ne'er been able to fatho#

#an&s fate

nor tell us wh! we are here

Still will we be



free as the sea

to be nothing but

our own shadow sel'es beach bu#s all after all

in future ti#e when

nations no longer e)ist and the earth is swe"t

b! ethnic hordes

in search of food and shelter. Neither "atient nor "lacid

in the face of all this

in the sea of e'er! da!

with its two tides( drift about

i##une to hidden reefs or harbors

So#eone throws #e

cr!stal fruits in the sha"e of life-"reser'ers

6thers wa'e fro# distant strands

7oodb!e, 7oodb!e,

*eached at last

bleached out ( would to the woods again

with its ancient trees

that sing lie sitars in the wind

wind

8ordless ragas,Shi"wreced ashore

at the #erc! of a'aricious gulls4

And !et and !et we are still not born for des"air

S"ring co#es an!wa!

And a ga! e)cursion train a""ears

The ancient conductor with sto'e-"i"e hat

and gold "ocetwatch

greets us lie long-lost "assengers gracing us with

wreathes around our necs

as ar#s of lo'ers insanel! e#brace us

(s there an!thing #ore to be said

before the! carr! us off

as dead



while we&re still drea#ing

still in search

of the bread of the word cast u"on the waters

the dough that rises

in the !east of s"eech in the written word

in "oetr!

Tracs u"on the sand, left b! corraled bands of ani#als

cornered b! #istaes and habitudes

and trains taen

to #istaen destinations or tri"s taen or not taen

with angels of lo'e

to lower latitudes

*etween two wa'es the ocean is still4

a silence of ages lasting but a #o#ent

between two wa'es

of e#otion

as lo'ers turn to each other

or awa!

Lo'eebbs and flowsco#es and goes

between two e#otions

!et surges again with each new wa'e

as so#e sea-creature fro# the dee"

breas the surface with a lea"The sea roars but sa!s no #ore

6 the !arns it could s"in

if it would

between its rages under the e!e of the sun

under the ear of the s!4

ities asunder, Plunderers and "ieces of eight,

Petrified hulls,

r!stal sulls, Sailors& #asturbations,

or !esterda!&s s"er#

lost in the wae

of a "leasure boat



6 endless the inchoate

incoherent narrati'e49o!ager: "ass on,

8e are not our fathers !et we carr! on

breathing lie the#

lo'ing and illing lie the#Awa! then awa!

in our custo#-built cata#arans

o'er the hills of ocean to where Atlantis

still rides the tides

or where that #agic #ountain

not on an! #a" wreathed in radiance

still hides

o"!right ; 2010 b! Lawrence Ferlinghetti

--

--

A Se/uence of Sonnets on t,e Deat, of Ro0ert Browning

BY ALERO 7HARLE0 0=IBURE

1

&he clearest eyes in all the world they read

=ith sense more keen and s%irit of sight more tr"e

&han #"rns and thrills in s"nrise when the dew

2lames and a#sor#s the glory ro"nd it shed

As they the light of ages !"ick and dead

7losed now forsake "sC yet the shaft that slew

7an slay not one of all the works we knew

or death discrown that many/la"relled head$

&he works of words whose life seems lightning wro"ght

And mo"lded of "ncon!"era#le tho"ght

And !"ickened with im%erisha#le flame

0tand fast and shine and smile ass"red that no"ght

)ay fade of all their myriad/mo"lded fame



or England*s memory clas% not Browning*s name$

11

Death what hast tho" to do with one for whom

&ime is not lord #"t servant9 =hat least %art

Of all the fire that fed his living heart

Of all the light more keen that s"ndawn*s #loom

&hat lit and led his s%irit strong as doom

And #right as ho%e can a"ght thy #reath may dart

"ench9 ay tho" knowest he knew thee what tho" art

A shadow #orn of terror*s #arren wom#

&hat #rings not forth save shadows$ =hat art tho"

&o dream al#eit tho" #reathe "%on his #row

&hat %ower on him is given theethat thy #reath

7an make him less than love acclaims him now

And hears all time so"nd #ack the word it saith9

=hat %art hast tho" then in his glory Death9

111

A graceless doom it seems that #ids "s grieveC

8enice and winter hand in deadly hand

Have slain the lover of her s"n#right strand

And singer of a storm#right 7hristmas Eve$

A graceless g"erdon we that loved receive

2or all o"r love from that the dearest land

Love worshi%%ed ever$ Blithe and soft and #land

&oo fair for storm to scathe or fire to cleave

0hone on o"r dreams and memories evermore

&he domes the towers the mo"ntains and the shore

&hat gird or g"ard thee 8eniceC cold and #lack

0eems now the face we loved as he of yore$

=e have given thee loveno stint no stay no lackC



=hat gift what gift is this tho" hast given "s #ack9

1*

B"t heto him who knows what gift is thine

Death9 Hardly may we think or ho%e when we

'ass likewise thither where to/night is he

Beyond the irremea#le o"ter seas that shine

And darken ro"nd s"ch dreams as half divine

0ome s"nlit har#o"r in that starless sea

=here gleams no shi% to windward or to lee

&o read with him the secret of thy shrine$

&here too as here may song delight and love

&he nightingale the sea/#ird and the dove

2"lfil with ,oy the s%lendo"r of the sky

&ill all #eneath wa- #right as all a#oveC

B"t none of all that search the heavens and try

&he s"n may match the sovereign eagle*s eye$

*

Among the wondro"s ways of men and time

He went as one that ever fo"nd and so"ght

And #ore in hand the lam%/like s%irit of tho"ght

&o ill"me with instance of its fire s"#lime

&he d"sk of many a clo"dlike age and clime$

o s%irit in sha%e of light and darkness wro"ght

o faith no fear no dream no ra%t"re no"ght

&hat #looms in wisdom no"ght that #"rns in crime

o virt"e girt and armed and helmed with light

o love more lovely than the snows are white

o ser%ent slee%ing in some dead so"l*s tom#

o song/#ird singing from some live so"l*s height



B"t he might hear inter%ret or ill"me

=ith sense invasive as the dawn of doom$

*1

=hat secret thing of s%lendo"r or of shade

0"rmised in all those wandering ways wherein

)an led of love and life and death and sin

0trays clim#s or cowers all"red a#sor#ed afraid

)ight not the strong and s"nlike sense invade

Of that f"ll so"l that had for aim to win

Light silent over time*s dark toil and din

Life at whose to"ch death fades as dead things fade9

O s%irit of man what mystery moves in thee

&hat he might know not of in s%irit and see

&he heart within the heart that seems to strive

&he life within the life that seems to #e

And hear thro"gh all thy storms that whirl and drive

&he living so"nd of all men*s so"ls alive9

*11

He held no dream worth wakingC so he said

He who stands now on death*s tri"m%hal stee%

Awakened o"t of life wherein we slee%

And dream of what he knows and sees #eing dead$

B"t never death for him was dark or dreadC

Look forth he #ade the so"l and fear not$ =ee%

All ye that tr"st not in his tr"th and kee%

8ain memory*s vision of a vanished head

As all that lives of all that once was he

0ave that which lightens from his wordC #"t we

=ho seeing the s"nset/colo"red waters roll

Yet know the s"n s"#d"ed not of the sea



or wee% nor do"#t that still the s%irit is whole

And life and death #"t shadows of the so"l$

0win#"rne was one of the most accom%lished lyric %oets of the 8ictorian era and was a %reeminent $

$ $ MORE »

MORE POEMS BY AL-ER$O$ &"ARLES S1$BUR$E

(,e Pi'grims

A &,anne' &rossing

A Lea%e2(a!ing

"endecas)''a0ics

Before Parting

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RELA(ED

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----

(,e &ampus on t,e "i''

BY =$ D$ 0ODRA00

U% the re%"ta#le walks of old esta#lished trees

&hey stalk children of the nouveau# riches$ chimes

Of the tall 7lock &ower drench their heads in #lessingC

+I don*t wanna %lay at yo"r ho"se

I don*t like yo" any more$.

)y ho"se stands o%%osite on the other hill










http://www.poetryfoundation.org/archive/tool.poet.period.1.html?period=Victorian















http://www.poetryfoundation.org/archive/tool.poet.period.1.html?period=Victorian





Among meadows with the orchard fences down and falling

Deer come almost to the door$

Yo" cannot see it even in this clearest morning$

=hite #irds hang in the air #etween

Over the gar#age landfill and those homes thereto ad,acent

Hovering slowly t"rning settling down

Like the flakes sifting im%erce%ti#ly onto the little town

In a water#all of glass$

And yet this morning #eyond this !"iet scene

&he floating #irds the #ackyards of the %oor

Beyond the sho%%ing %la6a the dead canal the hillside lying tilted in the air

&omorrow has #roken o"t todayC

Riot in Algeria in 7y%r"s in Ala#ama

Aged in wrong the em%ires are declining

And 7hina gathers so"ndlessly like evidence$

=hat shall I say to the yo"ng on s"ch a morning9

)ind is the one salvation9also grammar9

o my little ones lean not toward revolt$ &hey

Are the =hites the vag"ely f"rio"sly driven who resist

&heir so"ls with s"ch %assivity

As wo"ld make "akers swear$ All day dear Lord all day

&hey wear their godhead lightly$

&hey look o"t from their hill and say

&o themselves +=e have nowhere to go #"t down

&he great destination is to stay$.

0"rely the nations will #e reasona#le

&hey look at the worlddon*t they9the world*s way9

&he clock ,"st now has nothing more to say$

=$D$ 0nodgrass +&he 7am%"s on the Hill. from Selected Poems% &'()*&'+) ;ew YorkC 0oho 'ress

3?P@<$ 7o%yright > 3?P@ #y =$D$ 0nodgrass$ Re%rinted with the %ermission of the a"thor$



0o"rceC Selected Poems% &'()*&'+) ;3?P@<

--

Epitap, on t,e (om0stone of a &,i'd4 t,e Last of Se%en t,at

Died Before

BY A'HRA BEH

&his Little 0ilent loomy )on"ment

7ontains all that was sweet and innocent

&he softest %ratler that e*er fo"nd a &ong"e

His 8oice was )"sick and his =ords a 0ong

=hich now each List*ning Angel smiling hears

0"ch %retty Harmonies com%ose the 0%heres

=anton as "nfledg*d 7"%ids ere their 7harms

Has learn*d the little arts of doing harms

2air as yo"ng 7her"#ins as soft and kind

And tho translated co"ld not #e refin*d

&he 0eventh dear %ledge the "%tial (oys had given

&oil*d here on Earth retir*d to rest in Heaven

=here they the shining Host of Angels fill

0%read their gay wings #efore the &hrone and smile$

---

Santa Lucia

BY ROBER& HA00

I

Art loveC he cam%s o"tside my door

innocent carnivoro"s$ As if desire

were act"ally a fl"te as if the little song

transcend% transcend co"ld get yo" anywhere$

He #rings me wine he #elieves in the arts



III

0treaked in the window the city wavers

#"t the sky is em%ty clean$ Em%tiness

is strictC that %leases me$ I do cry o"t$

Like everyone else I thrash am s%layed$

Oh oh oh oh$ Eyes f"ll of wonder$

"ernica$ Ulysses on the #each$ I see

my #ody is his %rayer$ I see my #ody$

=alking in the galleries at the Lo"vre

I was each moment naked %ossessed$

&o"rists gorged on goosenecked 2lorentine girls

#y 'ollai"olo$ He sees me like a %ainter$

I hear his words for meC white gold$

I*d rather walk the city in the rain$

Dog shit traffic accidents$ =hatever god

there is dismem#ered in his 7hevy$

A different order of religio"s aweC

agony meat everything %lain afterwards$

I8

0anta L"ciaC eyes ,ellied on a %late$

&he thr"st of ser%entine was almost green

all thro"gh the mo"ntains where the rock cro%%ed o"t$

I liked s"ndowns d"sks smelling of madrone

the wildflowers which were not #ea"tif"l

fierce little wills rooting in the yellow

grass year after year thirst in the roots

mineral$ &hey have intelligence

of h"nger$ 'o%%ies lean to the morning s"n



l"%ine grows thick in the rockface self/heal

at creekside$ He wants to f"ck$ 0weet word$

All s"ction$ I want less$ ot that I fear

the h"ge dark of se- the shar% sweet light

light if it were water raveling rancor

tenderness like rain$ =hat I want ha%%ens

not when the deer free6es in the shade

and looks at yo" and yo" hold very still

and meet her ga6e #"t in the moment after

when she flicks her ears starts to feed again$

0anta L"cia from Praise #y Ro#ert Hass$ 7o%yright >3?@? #y Ro#ert Hass$ Used #y %ermission of

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0o"rceC Praise ;Har%er7ollins '"#lishers Inc 3?@?<

A,4 A,

BY (OY HAR(O

for Lurline .cGre/or

Ah ah cries the crow arching toward the heavy sky over the marina$

Lands on the crown of the %alm tree$

Ah ah sla%s the "rgent cove of ocean swimming thro"gh the sli%s$

=e carry canoes to the edge of the salt$

Ah ah groans the crew with the weight the winds c"tting skin$

=e claim o"r seats$ 'elicans %erch in the draft for fish$

Ah ah #eats o"r l"ngs and we are racing into the waves$

&ho"gh there are worlds #elow "s and a#ove "s we are straight ahead$

Ah ah tatttoos the engines of yo"r %lane against the skyaway from these waters$

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http://www.harpercollins.com/



Each %addle stroke follows the c"rve from reach to loss$

Ah ah calls the s"n from a fishing #oat with a %ale yellow sail$ =e fly #y

on o"r ret"rn over the net of eternity thrown o"t for stars$

Ah ah scra%es the h"ll of my so"l$ Ah ah$

Ah Ah from How We 0ecame Human !ew and Selected Poems&')(*122& #y (oy Har,o$

7o%yright > 5JJ5 #y (oy Har,o$ Used #y %ermission of =$=$ orton 7om%any Inc$

www.wwnorton.com$

0o"rceC How We 0ecame Human !ew and Selected Poems &')(*122& ;=$ =$ orton and

7om%any Inc$ 5JJ5<

(,e ar "orse

BY EA8A BOLAD

&his dry night nothing "n"s"al

A#o"t the cli% clo% cas"al

Iron of his shoes as he stam%s death

Like a mint on the innocent coinage of earth$

I lift the window watch the am#ling feather

Of hock and fetlock loosed from its daily tether

In the tinker cam% on the Enniskerry Road

'ass his #reath hissing his sn"ffling head

Down$ He is gone$ o great harm is done$

Only a leaf of o"r la"rel hedge is torn

Of distant interest like a maimed lim#

Only a rose which now will never clim#

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http://www.wwnorton.com/



&he stone of o"r ho"se e-%enda#le a mere

Line of defence against him a vol"nteer

Yo" might say only a croc"s its #"l#o"s head

Blown from growth one of the screamless dead$

B"t we we are safe o"r "nformed fear

Of fierce commitment gone why sho"ld we care

If a rose a hedge a croc"s are "%rooted

Like cor%ses remote cr"shed m"tilated9

He st"m#les on like a r"mo"r of war h"ge

&hreatening$ eigh#o"rs "se the s"#terf"ge

Of c"rtains$ He st"m#les down o"r short street

&hankf"lly %assing "s$ I %a"se wait

&hen to #reathe relief lean on the sill

And for a second only my #lood is still

=ith atavism$ &hat rose he smashed frays

Ri##oned across o"r hedge recalling days

Of #"rned co"ntryside illicit #raidC

A ca"se r"ined #efore a world #etrayed$

Eavan Boland +&he =ar Horse. from An 3ri/in Li4e Water Collected Poems &'5)*&'+)" 7o%yright

> 3?? #y Eavan Boland$ Re%rinted with the %ermission of =$ =$ orton 7om%any Inc$ &his

selection may not #e re%rod"ced stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or #y any

means witho"t the %rior written %ermission of the %"#lisher$



with a win4 and a win4 and a win4ie*wic4"

And when I do at last s"cceed

in %"tting my mo"th to the horsehair/fringed niche

I can taste the small loaf of #read he #aked from that whole seed

with a lin4 and a lin4 and a lin4y*lic4"

"eart to "eart

BY RI&A DO8E

It*s neither red

nor sweet$

It doesn*t melt

or t"rn over

#reak or harden

so it can*t feel

%ain

yearning

regret$

It doesn*t have

a ti% to s%in on

it isn*t even

sha%ely

,"st a thick cl"tch

of m"scle

lo%sided

m"te$ 0till

I fell it inside



its cage so"nding

a d"ll tattooC

I want% I want

#"t I can*t o%en itC

there*s no key$

I can*t wear it

on my sleeve

or tell yo" from

the #ottom of it

how I feel$ Here

it*s all yo"rs now

#"t yo"*ll have

to take me

too$

Rita Dove Heart to Heart from American Smooth$ 7o%yright > 5JJ: #y Rita Dove$ Re%rinted #y

%ermission of =$ =$ orton 7om%any Inc$

0o"rceC American Smooth ;=$ =$ orton and 7om%any Inc$ 5JJ:<

(,e -ar0o &'ot,

BY LU7IA 'ERILLO

7or .arybelle

Her da"ghter wrote #ack to say my friend had died

;my friend to whom I wrote a letter may#e twice a year<$

2rom time to time I*d %ict"red her amid strange foliage

;and in a )ongol y"rt for she was fond of travel<$

=hy not a flock of something darkening the sky so we wo"ld know

;ah% so*and*so is /one8<9

2or a woman from the city this might %erha%s #e %igeons

;#lacking o"t the s"n<$

Or else a h"man messenger as once when she was fa#ric sho%%ing



;#olt of green silk f"rled across her #ody<

ar#o %assed and nodded$ At )acy*s years ago

;when I was not a creat"re in her world<$

Of co"rse she #o"ght the cloth #"t never sewed the dress

;a massive stroke and I take comfort in the fact

she felt no %ain$<

Logic says we sho"ld make omens of o"r ar#os and o"r #irds

;#"t which one #ears the message9 which one ,"st the mess9<

2rom the kayak I*ve seen %igeons nesting "nderneath the %ier

;a dim ammoniated stink<

where one flew into my face$ I read this as a sign

;that rancid smash of feathers<

#"t co"ldn*t fathom what it meant tra%%ed in the lag/time

;of an oracle*s translation<$

2oolish mind wanting to o#literate the lag and why

;let memory wait to catch "% to its sorrow<$

0o"rceC Poetry ;)ay 5JJ@<$

Song 56Lo%e ,as crept...78

BY D$ H$ ;DA8ID HERBER&< LA=RE7E

Love has cre%t into her sealed heart

As a field #ee #lack and am#er

Breaks from the winter/cell to clam#er

U% the warm grass where the s"n#eams start$

Love has cre%t into her s"mmery eyes

And a glint of colored s"nshine #rings

0"ch as his along the folded wings

Of the #ee #efore he flies$

B"t I with my r"ffling im%atient #reath

Have loosened the wings of the wild yo"ng s%rite



He has o%ened them o"t in a reeling flight

And down her words he hasteneth$

Love flies delighted in her voiceC

&he h"m of his glittering dr"nken wings

0ets !"ivering with m"sic the little things

&hat she says and her sim%le words re,oice$

Originally %"#lished in Poetry Decem#er 3?3:$

0o"rceC Poetry ;Decem#er 3?3:<$

--

Lic,en -'ows in t,e Moon'ig,t

BY (OH SI0ELLA

Lichen glows in the moonlight

so fierce only clo"d #locking

the moon #rings relief$ &hen %assed #y

recharged it lea%s "% off rocks

and s"ffocatesthere is no ro"te

thro"gh rocks witho"t having to confront

its #eseechingit lights the way

not the moon and o"tdoes e%ithets

like %hos%horescent fl"orescent or florescentC

it smirks and smiles and lifts the corner

of its li%s in hideo"s or #lissf"l coll"sion

and #irds %i%e an eternal dawn never knowing

when to slee% or wake$ &hey might

#e tricked into thinking their timeGs "%



in the s%ectr"m of lichen its e-tra/gravital

%ers"asion its crackling movement

remem#ered as still indifferent #arely

living "nder the s"n or on a dark night

clim#ing "% yo"Gd esca%e #"t like all great

molec"lar weights it leaves traces

yo" carry with yo" into the realms

of comfort and faith$

0o"rceC Poetry ;)ay 5J3J<$

A Boo! of *erses underneat, t,e Boug,9

BY O)AR SHAYAA)

A Book of 8erses "nderneath the Bo"gh

A ("g of =ine A Loaf of Breadand &ho"

Beside me singing in the =ilderness

Oh =ilderness were 'aradise enow1

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