More Short

One of my life’s great pleasures is to discover a new favorite poet, one I’d never heard of before but whose work grabs me. It’s like finding buried treasure. The treasure chest is the book of poetry, and reading the poems is like savoring pieces of treasure one by one. Howard Nemerov(1920-1971)was just such a discovery.

In the spirit of my last post, here is a sampling of short poems by Howard Nemerov.

SOLIPSISM & SOLECISM

Strange about shadows, but the sun
Has never seen a single one.
Should night be mentioned by the moon
He'd be appalled at what he's done.

MORNING SUN

How many more this morning are dead of
The peace I came to bring a sword instead of?

CREATION MYTH ON A MOEBIUS BAND

This world's just mad enough to have been made
By the Being his beings into Being prayed.

POWER TO THE PEOPLE

Why are the stamps adorned with kings and presidents?
That we may lick their hinder parts and thump their heads.

WHAT KIND OF GUY WAS HE?

Just so you shouldn't have to ask again,
He was the kind of guy that if he said
Something and you were the kind of guy that said
You can say that again, he'd say it again.*

* . . . reminds me of my husband :-)