In this two-headed month Look forward and behind And see the land Where the hills are kind And sometimes end in houses; One house in particular notice Where love lives With its two gardens Vegetable and flower. Here is a land to be explored, Its forests are dark and dense Except where spattered by dropsContinue reading “JANUARY IDYLL / a poem by Tom Evans”
Category Archives: Modern Poetry
Poem on a Flower / Tom Evans
My flower was laden with dew, So pink, so moist, and open; Like lips that are parted in two, Her center, her tongue, was golden. And crossed by green blades of grass, Formed in a triumphal arch; Through which some great man could pass, Or some great army march.
Impromptu After Frost
America, Land of opportunity: Imagine the poor, the hungry, the hunted Young and old Trudging forever on foot, No longer having a home Or even a place to go to. We used to be that place Where, when you got here, We had to take you in. But we now espouse A road less taken,Continue reading “Impromptu After Frost”
60s Music / a poem in progress by Tom Evans
50’s music — straight standards with strings — Sinatra Fatha’ Hines — my parents’ music Schmaltzy corny square, any way you Want to put it — understandable After a Depression and war. I was a captive audience, Who, while hearing, wasn’t tuned in, Much less turned on, knowing there must be a better way.Continue reading “60s Music / a poem in progress by Tom Evans”
(But I Didn’t Die) / a new poem by Tom Evans
A.A.’s kidnapping and drowning When I was a child, horrified me, And still does. It was an image of my Own childhood — To be taken away In the midst of play — What to say to the little Brother (almost a twin) Left behind? He, too, came home To an empty room. YouContinue reading ” (But I Didn’t Die) / a new poem by Tom Evans”
Say It Isn’t So / a new poem by Tom Evans
Days of summer gone. If I had written a line like that, Joe Bolton, I would have died A happy man. Why did you do it, Were you half in love with Easeful death? How did you do it? Did you bite your tongue? I would understand If that was the case. You see, IContinue reading “Say It Isn’t So / a new poem by Tom Evans”
Heat Wave / a new poem by Tom Evans
Heat never bothers you As a kid, play until You drop, brown and dusty Then haul ass on your bike To the corner store, Grab an ice cold pop From the cooler And you’re good to go, Ready to play two Before you’re called home for dinner. It turns up a bit as aContinue reading “Heat Wave / a new poem by Tom Evans”
BASEBALL, OR THE MYTH OF THE ETERNAL RECCURENCE / a new poem by Tom Evans
Dear Ken, FDR wrote to Judge Landis shortly after Pearl Harbor when it was being decided whether major league games should continue during the war, America needs baseball as a recreational diversion for a nation that will of necessity be working longer and harder than ever before in the coming times. My friend Rich,Continue reading “BASEBALL, OR THE MYTH OF THE ETERNAL RECCURENCE / a new poem by Tom Evans”
The Dream Songs / John Berryman
A scholar and professor as well as a poet, John Berryman graduated from Columbia in 1936, then went to study at Cambridge University for two years on a scholarship. Early on he wrote a critical biography of the American writer Stephen Crane, and first achieved national attention for Homage to Mistress Bradstreet (1956), a dense, brilliant book-length dialogue withContinue reading “The Dream Songs / John Berryman”
