Noon
by Philip Levine
I bend to the ground
to catch
something whispered,
urgent, drifting
across the ditches.
The heaviness of
flies stuttering
in orbit, dirt
ripening, the sweat
of eggs.
There are
small streams
the width ofa thumb
running in the villages
of sheaves, whole
eras of grain
wakening on
the stalks, a roof
that breathes over
my head.
Behind me
the tracks creaking
like a harness,
an abandoned bicycle
that cries and cries,
a bottle of common
wine that won’t
pour.
At such times
I expect the earth
to pronounce. I say,
“I’ve been waiting
so long.”
Up ahead
a stand of eucalyptus
guards the river,
the river moving
east, the heavy light
sifts down driving
the sparrows for
cover, and the women
bow as they slap
the life out
of sheets and pants
and worn hands.
End of the poem
15 random poems
- Николай Языков – Елагиной
- Thoughts Religious Content
- Sonnet 135: Whoever hath her wish, thou hast thy will by William Shakespeare
- Spanish Banks
- Анатолий Жигулин – Обвал
- Юрий Галансков стихи: читать все стихотворения, поэмы поэта Юрий Галансков – Поэзия на Poetry Monster
- We Two Boys Together Clinging. by Walt Whitman
- Омар Хайям – Мы источник веселья, и скорби рудник
- Proud Music of The Storm by Walt Whitman
- Sonnet 10
- A Farewel To America to Mrs. S. W. by Phillis Wheatley
- a gentle day by Raj Arumugam
- Ariel by Sylvia Plath
- J–K. Huysmans poem – Amy Lowell poems | Poems and Poetry
- Николай Заболоцкий – Свадьба
Some external links:
Duckduckgo.com – the alternative in the US
Quant.com – a search engine from France, and also an alternative, at least for Europe
Yandex – the Russian search engine (it’s probably the best search engine for image searches).
Philip Levine ( 1928 – 2015) was an American poet best known for his poems about working-class Detroit. He taught for more than thirty years in the English department of California State University, Fresno and held teaching positions at other universities as well. He served on the Board of Chancellors of the Academy of American Poets from 2000 to 2006, and was appointed Poet Laureate of the United States for 2011–2012