Category Archives: Stanley Kunitz
A Whirl with Stanley Kunitz
The first line of each haiku or senryu is taken from “The Layers” by Stanley Kunitz.
~~ 1 ~~
In a rising wind
skeleton-thin old women
stumble through the streets.
~~ 2 ~~
Scavenger angels
swirl through dark cathedral halls,
heedless of God’s voice.
~~ 3 ~~
Doubt the next chapter,
for each page of it is false,
written by strange hands.
~~ 4 ~~
To decipher it,
you will need a nimble mind
and a humble heart.
~~ 5 ~~
Live in the layers—
crave nothing from the dark vault
where untruths cower.
~~ 6 ~~
Already written—
days of joy and rapture,
no lumps in the throat.
~~ 7 ~~
Done with my changes,
I take the train to Denver—
no one knows my name.
~~ 8 ~~
Abandoned camp-sites
litter the lonely terrain—
prairie dogs rejoice.
~~ 9 ~~
In my darkest night,
willow wraps her supple limbs
round me, holds me tight.
© 2013 by Magical Mystical Teacher
More The Sunday Whirl, Wordle 111
~~ 1 ~~
In a rising wind
skeleton-thin old women
stumble through the streets.
~~ 2 ~~
Scavenger angels
swirl through dark cathedral halls,
heedless of God’s voice.
~~ 3 ~~
Doubt the next chapter,
for each page of it is false,
written by strange hands.
~~ 4 ~~
To decipher it,
you will need a nimble mind
and a humble heart.
~~ 5 ~~
Live in the layers—
crave nothing from the dark vault
where untruths cower.
~~ 6 ~~
Already written—
days of joy and rapture,
no lumps in the throat.
~~ 7 ~~
Done with my changes,
I take the train to Denver—
no one knows my name.
~~ 8 ~~
Abandoned camp-sites
litter the lonely terrain—
prairie dogs rejoice.
~~ 9 ~~
In my darkest night,
willow wraps her supple limbs
round me, holds me tight.
© 2013 by Magical Mystical Teacher
More The Sunday Whirl, Wordle 111
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A Little Whirl with Stanley
The first line of each haiku or senryu is taken from “The Layers” by Stanley Kunitz.
When I look behind
at the fork I did not take,
I cannot drive on.
~~ ~~ ~~
Toward the horizon
I behold a manic light
hewn from seven stars.
~~ ~~ ~~
My true affections
lie smothered in desert sand—
I cannot find them.
~~ ~~ ~~
I have made myself
forlorn with desire for one
who contemns me sore.
~~ ~~ ~~
I roamed through wreckage
where two opposites did clash,
ending their affair.
~~ ~~ ~~
Though I lack the art
to fuse red wax with birdsong,
still I am content.
© 2012 by Magical Mystical Teacher
More The Poetry Pantry #126
More The Sunday Whirl, Wordle 85
When I look behind
at the fork I did not take,
I cannot drive on.
~~ ~~ ~~
Toward the horizon
I behold a manic light
hewn from seven stars.
~~ ~~ ~~
My true affections
lie smothered in desert sand—
I cannot find them.
~~ ~~ ~~
I have made myself
forlorn with desire for one
who contemns me sore.
~~ ~~ ~~
I roamed through wreckage
where two opposites did clash,
ending their affair.
~~ ~~ ~~
Though I lack the art
to fuse red wax with birdsong,
still I am content.
© 2012 by Magical Mystical Teacher
More The Poetry Pantry #126
More The Sunday Whirl, Wordle 85
