Fragments on the Death of a Muskrat
A POEM
Ballpeened by a bumper,
Struck down by steel,
Bowled hard over pavement,
Done in with a wheel.
O cinders, O gators, O gadabout hens,
O children with maces and pigs in clean pens,
Please arrest, I do pray you,
Your primordial urge
To pause in sad convocation
And sing this rat’s dirge.
You May Also Enjoy
Who Taught You?
Butterfly, who taught you
Your exotic dance?
Who made your wings melodious?
What makes…
Envy of the Empty Air
Of what do they dream
— the white-robed monks?
while we
with half-shaped forms
from…
The Soaring Birds of Freedom
The soaring birds of freedom
Fall to the earth in yellow streams of fire,
Igniting…