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The Tarnish

Text of Poem

The afternoon failed of its promise and the sun
Hid in a thicket of clouds on its downward climb,
The bright day’s petals tattered and fell apart
Lost as a tower clock’s voice asleep at its chime.

I rocked on my heels and saw sleet’s rowdy hands
Rumple the tulip bed, a cold wind goaded
A child at play till she cried, I turned to stare
At a shallow hill where the topsoil had eroded.

The small mean faults of the day like blisters broken,
Rubbed raw, were slow to heal, I felt time’s wedge
Split need from the order of things, like a farm run down
By shabby intentions, a plow with a rusty edge.

I carry my doctor’s degree on such occasions
And speak at length on the tarnish of small losses.

First Line
The afternoon failed of its promise and the sun
Original Pub Location
Original Publication Date
1962
Original Citation
Wormwood Review 2.2 Issue 6 (1962) 2.
Republication
Complete Poems
392
Hearst Collections
Word Count
134
Poetic Form
closed
Themes
Twitter Quote
I felt time’s wedge / Split need from the order of things