April 27: Gary Snyder, "Kyoto: March," Upper Peninsula Moon

Kyoto:  March

by:  Gary Snyder

A few light flakes of snow

Fall in the feeble sun;

Birds sing in the cold,

A warbler by the wall. The plum

Buds tight and chill soon bloom.

The moon begins first

Fourth, a faint slice west

At nightfall. Jupiter half-way

High at the end of night-

Meditation. The dove cry

Twangs like a bow.

At dawn Mt. Hiei dusted white

On top; in the clear air

Folds of all the gullied green

Hills around the town are sharp,

Breath stings. Beneath the roofs

Of frosty houses

Lovers part, from tangle warm

Of gentle bodies under quilt

And crack the icy water to the face

And wake and feed the children

And grandchildren that they love.

_________________________

It's a cold night in the Upper Peninsula.  I'm sure there's going to be a fine layer of frost on the windows of my car tomorrow, just like there was this morning.

I'm glad that the week is over.  It has been long and tiring.  I haven't gotten a whole lot done except work and teaching.  Not a whole lot of poetry going on in my life these last five or so days.  Hoping to rectify that situation tomorrow.  Work on an essay that I started a little while ago.

Right now, however, it's all about the stars and moon and cold. 

Saint Marty is ready to let night take over.