Tag Archives: Poetry

Once upon a time there were two brothers.

Posted on August 30, 2023 by Brian D. Butler

THE HISTORY OF MY LIFE John Ashbery Once upon a time there were two brothers. Then there was only one: myself. I grew up very fast, before learning to drive, even. There was I: a stinking adult. I thought of … Continue reading →

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Lou Reed meets Edgar Allan Poe

Posted on August 28, 2023 by Brian D. Butler

I have long been a fan of the late great Lou Reed, but I only recently discovered that he created an updated version of the iconic poem The Raven by Edgar Allan Poe. In 2003, he  set Poe’s most famous stories and … Continue reading →

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Diminished Galleries

Posted on August 25, 2023 by Brian D. Butler

DIMINISHED GALLERIES Keith Waldrop 1932-2023 too old for vision I must settle for dreams specific forms of cloud (body surrounded by body) every sensation con- ceals a dream fresco figurine sculpture in low relief (a motor halo a mental blue) … Continue reading →

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This is just to say…

Posted on August 17, 2023 by Brian D. Butler

This Is Just To Say I have eaten the plums that were in the icebox and which you were probably saving for breakfast Forgive me they were delicious so sweet and so cold -William Carlos Williams

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Someone in Paris

Posted on August 9, 2023 by Brian D. Butler

Someone in Paris, France Is Thinking of You This poem is happening in Paris, France where it’s raining and we’re all so drunk that it’s impossible to keep a secret. Every morning the waiters say bonjour and every morning I … Continue reading →

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Speaking of Sunsets

Posted on July 14, 2023 by Brian D. Butler

Never Again The Same Speaking of sunsets, last night’s was shocking. I mean, sunsets aren’t supposed to frighten you, are they? Well, this one was terrifying. Sure, it was beautiful, but far too beautiful. It wasn’t natural. One climax followed … Continue reading →

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The Work of Happiness

Posted on July 4, 2023 by Brian D. Butler

THE WORK OF HAPPINESS by May Sarton I thought of happiness, how it is woven Out of the silence in the empty house each day And how it is not sudden and it is not given But is creation itself … Continue reading →

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To My Enemies

Posted on June 20, 2023 by Brian D. Butler

Watching the nonstop maddening show of U.S. politics and culture these days, I have been reminded of the poem “To My Enemies” by the under-appreciated American poet Bert Meyers. Meyers was born in Los Angeles on March 20, 1928. The son of … Continue reading →

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from the pitcher to the bowl

Posted on June 8, 2023 by Brian D. Butler

 Wisława Szymborska’s epigrammatic poem “Vermeer” (translated by Clare Cavanagh and Stanisław Barańczak from the Polish): So long as that woman from the Rijksmuseum in painted quiet and concentration keeps pouring milk day after day from the pitcher to the bowl … Continue reading →

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Dead Stars

Posted on May 28, 2023 by Brian D. Butler

DEAD STARS by Ada Limón Out here, there’s a bowing even the trees are doing. Winter’s icy hand at the back of all of us. Black bark, slick yellow leaves, a kind of stillness that feels so mute it’s almost … Continue reading →

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