Under a splintered mast,
Torn from ship and cast
Near her hull,
A stumbling shepherd found
Embedded in the ground,
A seagull
Of lapis lazuli,
A scarab of the sea,
With wings spread—
Curling its coral feet,
Parting its beak to greet
Men long dead.
By Marianne Moore
By Marianne Moore (more…)
“When I am dead,”
The wizard said,
“I’ll look upon the narrow way
And this Dante,
And know that he was right
And he’ll delight
In my remorse,
Of course.”
“When I am dead,”
The student said,
“I shall have grown so tolerant,
I’ll find I can’t
Laugh at your sorry plight
Or take delight
In your chagrin,
Merlin.”
By Marianne Moore
You make me think of many men
Once met, to be forgot again
Or merely resurrected
In a parenthesis of wit
That found them hastening through it
Too brisk to be inspected.
by Marianne Moore
blakeleitchpoetry.com 