Thursday, October 1, 2009

Now They've Lost Themselves Instead





157

Suffering old bad the skull utters an oath
And the oath is a sickness a sign of days
Suddenly opening the eyes of the world
With a stick and a string
An old man passes for all
The answers hard and broken
The warning taken and
The river rising, watching, watching
Out he goes like the morning garbage
Out he goes to the curb
The word of time divides by two
The work of the day overtaken and unfolded
The lark is shaken and dangled
Finally heavy and blown from the bay
Surprised by the sunlight and the
Lunatic timepiece
Won’t you go after him?
Follow him down and explain.


158

Tell me the meaning
Of wishes in ages
Tell me the meaning
Of a knife in the water
Tell me who made
all the bareheaded partners
And the small unbidden children
Recovered from ages left in the earth.
Tell me the meaning of drinking and poetry
Tell me the meaning of loose lost feathers
Tell me the meaning of time and stillness.
Tell me who made this place called earth.

1 comment:

Richard Ewing said...

The piano scene shows quite clearly why your -friends have lost their way- There's a definite connection from the sinister intent of his music to your friends' inadvertent capitulation to his playing. Please don't belong. Please don't you be very long. Evidently, to no avail.