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The Blame

Text of Poem

It is difficult to explain
yourself to a woman who is
explaining herself to you
after you have both agreed
the affair has petered out
and you try to excuse each
other from the blame you feel
you each deserve. The words
cluster around your mouths
like a flock of birds on a
telephone wire that sits there
momently, then flies away
leaving the perch empty but
the wire alive with its
throbbing tongues.

First Line
It is difficult to explain
Original Pub Location
Original Publication Date
1970
Original Citation
Kansas Quarterly 3 (Winter 1970-1971) 18.
Complete Poems
223
Hearst Collections
Word Count
74
Poetic Form
open
Themes