Tragedy Hiccup
Rock does not care
if we make it through this day,
the canyon wren brings
the good news of spring,
whale song travels across an ocean
yet we complain of dullness,
our government shot
the stray dog of truth,
radio collars
are a shameful science,
one piece of wildness is worth more
than a library of sonnets,
the war dead are messengers
stammering our disbelief,
metal holds memory
horrible or otherwise,
the deaths of our old
should be a simple passage,
poets chop logic
with words,
the peculiar loveliness
of feet,
the sad arc
of a jawbone in the sand,
the color of bodies
architects commit felonies
across the landscape,
trees are killed in America
to save sidewalks,
entertainment will not keep you
out of prison,
a child’s limbs
contain more light than a star,
deeply listening
will make you crumble,
your terrible beauty
is a slow misfortune,
fear will find you
if you cling too tightly,
this heaviness is all my sorrow
and yours,
the tragedy of this world
will shake you into dust,
caring this much
will break your last
forgotten bone.
