The Breaking
Did I believe I had a clear mind?
It was like the water of a river
floweing shallow over the ice. And now
that the rising water has broken
the ice, I see that what I thought
was the light is part of the dark.
The Recognition
You put on my clothes
and it was as though
we met some other place
and I looked and knew
you. This is what we keep
going through, the lyrical
changes, the strangesness
in which I know again
what I have known before.
Except
Now that you have gone
and I am alone and quiet,
my contentment would be
complete, if I did not wish
you were here so I could say,
"How good it is, Tanya,
to be alone and quiet."
Throwing Away the Mail
Nothing is simple,
not even simplification.
Thus, throwing away
the mail, I exchange
the complexity of duty
for the simplicity of guilt.
Traveling at Home
Even in a country you know by heart
it's hard to go the same way twice.
The life of the going changes.
The chances change and make a new way.
Any tree or stone or bird
can be the bud of a new direction. The
natural correction is to make intent
of accident. To get back before dark
is the art of going.