Between Two Deserts

IN A CLEARING
—W.S. Merwin

The unnumbered herds flow like lichens
Along the darkness each carpet at its height
In silence
Herds without end
Without death
Nothing is before them nothing after
Among the hooves the hooves' brothers the shells
In a sea

Passing through senses
As though bright clearings surrounded with pain
Some of the animals
See souls moving in their word death
With its many tongues that no god could speak
That can describe
Nothing that cannot die

The word
Surrounds the souls
The hide they wear
Like a light in the light
And when it goes out they vanish

In the eyes of the herds there is only one light
They cherish it with the darkness it belongs to
They take their way through it nothing is
Before them and they leave it
A small place
Where dying a sun rises

________________________

WATCHERS
—W.S. Merwin

The mowers begin
And after this morning the fox
Will no longer glide close to the house in full day
When a breath stirs the wheat
Leaving his sounds waiting at a distance
Under a few trees

And lie out
Watching from the nodding light the birds on the roofs
The noon sleep

Perhaps nothing
For some time will cross the new size of the stubble fields
In the light
And watch us
But the day itself coming alone
From the woods with its hunger
Today a tall man saying nothing but taking notes
Tomorrow a colorless woman standing
With her reproach and her bony children
Before rain

________________________

William Stanley Merwin was born on this day in 1927.


This Weekend:

•••Tonight (Sat., 9/30), 7-9 PM: “The Show” Poetry Series features Prentice (2006 Oakland/San Francisco Grand Slam Champion) Powell, Noah “SuperNova” Hayes, Lawrence Brooks, Jason Banks, Miss Ashleigh in Love Jones Poetry Night. Wo’se Community Center (off 35th & Broadway), 2863 35th St., Sac. $5. Info: T.Mo at 916-455-POET.

•••Tomorrow (Sun., 10/1), 6 PM: Local poet/artist/musician José Montoya is the first Fall featured reader at PoemSpirits, which will begin its fifth year this Sunday. Series co-facilitator JoAnn Anglin will also present a brief overview of the work of Poet Sharon Olds. Also open mic: All are invited to bring a poem of your own (or another’s) to read. Unitarian Universalist Society of Sacramento, 2425 Sierra Blvd., 2 blocks north of Fair Oaks Blvd, between Howe and Fulton Avenues. UUSS Foyer/Lounge. Snacks available. Info: JoAnn Anglin, 916-451-1372, or Tom Goff/Nora Staklis, 916-481-3312.

•••Monday (10/2), 7:30 PM: Sacramento Poetry Center presents Andy Jones, who teaches writing and literature classes at UC Davis after having run the English Department's Computer-Aided Instruction Program for many years. He also hosts "Dr. Andy's Poetry and Technology Hour" on KDVS each Wednesday afternoon at 5 PM. In February, 2006, Andy's book of poetry, Split Stock, was published by John Natsoulas Press. The co-author of Split Stock is Brad Henderson. That's Monday at HQ for the Arts, 25th & R Sts., Sac.

•••Also Monday (10/2), 7:30 PM: Snake Pal, Rattlechapper (Living with Myth) and Rattlesnake Review columnist-in-residence Taylor Graham will be reading in Davis at The Other Voice, hosted by James Lee Jobe. The Other Voice meets in the library of the Unitarian Church at 27074 Patwin Road in Davis. Open mic follows, so bring along a poem to share. Taylor's newest book, The Downstairs Dance Floor, is winner of the Robert Phillips Poetry Chapbook Prize from Texas Review Press; this year's judge was well-known poet and educator R.S. Gwynn.

•••OR—catch Taylor Graham on KXJZ radio during the "Insight" program at 2 PM on Monday! (The local NPRs just traded frequencies; KXJZ is 90.9 now.)

_______________________

FOR THE ANNIVERSARY OF MY DEATH
—W.S. Merwin

Every year without knowing it I have passed the day
When the last fires will wave to me
And the silence will set out
Tireless traveler
Like the beam of a lightless star

Then I will no longer
Find myself in life as in a strange garment
Surprised at the earth
And the love of one woman
And the shamelessness of men
As today writing after three days of rain
Hearing the wren sing and the falling cease
And bowing not knowing to what

_______________________

PROVISION
—W.S. Merwin

All morning with dry instruments
The field repeats the sound
Of rain
From memory
And in the wall
The dead increase their invisible honey
It is August
The flocks are beginning to form
I will take with me the emptiness of my hands
What you do not have you find everywhere

_______________________

AIR
—W.S. Merwin

Naturally it is night.
Under the overturned lute with its
One string I am going my way
Which has a strange sound.

This way the dust, that way the dust.
I listen to both sides
But I keep right on.
I remember the leaves sitting in judgment
And then winter.

I remember the rain with its bundle of roads.
The rain taking all its roads.
Nowhere.

Young as I am, old as I am,

I forget tomorrow, the blind man.
I forget the life among the buried windows.
The eyes in the curtains.
The wall
Growing through the immortelles.
I forget silence
The owner of the smile.

This must be what I wanted to be doing,
Walking at night between the two deserts,
Singing.

________________________

—Medusa

Medusa encourages poets of all ilk and ages to send their poetry, photos and art, and announcements of Northern California poetry events to kathykieth@hotmail.com for posting on this daily Snake blog. Rights remain with the poets. Previously-published poems are okay for Medusa’s Kitchen, as long as you own the rights. (Please cite publication.)