Exeunt
by Richard Wilbur
Piecemeal the summer dies;
At the field's edge a daisy lives alone;
A last shawl of burning lies
On a gray field-stone.
All cries are thin and terse;
The field has droned the summer's final mass;
A cricket like a dwindled hearse
Crawls from the dry grass.
Another poem by Richard Wilbur here.
I won't look at crickets during fall in the same way. I will think of those old time hearsts trundling along.
ReplyDeleteLisa, this little poem has such strong images, doesn't it? Quite, quite wonderful, I think.
ReplyDeleteLovely. Thankyou!
ReplyDeleteI'm so very pleased you liked it, Katherine.
ReplyDeleteI think it's hard with modern poems to pull off the end-rhyme successfully. This one uses it quite well: the end-rhymes do not come off heavy-handed, but as a natural rhythm. Also, the images and word choices are fantastic.
ReplyDeleteAbout the way that I feel these days, Nan. Even with this last blast of humidity and heat down here in the NY 'burbs...I can already see the slow transition.
ReplyDeleteI've never looked forward to winter. For some reason, this year even less so. This poem brings it home.
Thanks for posting!
- Jeff
They really are fantastic, Christy. And I find that when I love the feeling and words of a poem, I often don't even notice the rhyme until I've read it a few times, which amazes me.
ReplyDeleteJeff, maybe the south is calling you? I'm only half a person in the hot weather. This really was a very sad poem I thought. Not necessarily how I feel, but I do understand it. I think of all the lines I love best 'the cries are thin and terse'
Nan, it is.
Thanks Nan dear,
ReplyDeleteI love this and am printing it right NOW.
Joys,
Sharon Lovejoy Writes from Sunflower House and a Little Green Island
Wonderful pictures in the poet's words and your photo is a perfect one. -- I followed your link to the other one as well. I need to read more poetry.
ReplyDeleteIt must be especially noticeable to note the changes of seasons upcountry like you...here in the 'burbs, less so. But still, a sense of summer ending. Lovely poem.
ReplyDeleteSharon, that pleases me so much.
ReplyDeleteSallie, there are quite a few poems under 'Letter Topics' which follows 'Blog Archive' after the daily posting. My new blog arrangement!
Susan, there's a feeling in the air, a look in the sky that says change is coming.