"To The Angelbeast" by Eduardo C. Corral

For Arthur Russell

All that glitters isn’t music.

Once, hidden in tall grass,

I tossed fistfuls of dirt into the air:

doe after doe of leaping.

You said it was nothing

but a trick of the light. Gold

curves. Gold scarves.

Am I not your animal?

You’d wait in the orchard for hours

to watch a deer

break from the shadows.

You said it was like lifting a cello

out of its black case.

From "Bird" by Dorianne Laux

I'm alone with dead roses in a jam jar.

From "Time Problem" by Brenda Hillman

I have borrowed the little boat

and I say to him Come into the little boat,   

    you were happy there;

From "A Perfect Mess" by Mary Karr

It’s not law but the sprawl
of our separate wills that keeps us all flowing.

A reminder when I needed it

Go placidly amid the noise and haste,
and remember what peace there may be in silence.
As far as possible without surrender
be on good terms with all persons.


Speak your truth quietly and clearly;
and listen to others,
even the dull and the ignorant;
they too have their story.


Avoid loud and aggressive persons,
they are vexations to the spirit.
If you compare yourself with others,
you may become vain and bitter;
for always there will be greater and lesser persons than yourself.
Enjoy your achievements as well as your plans.


Keep interested in your own career, however humble;
it is a real possession in the changing fortunes of time.
Exercise caution in your business affairs;
for the world is full of trickery.
But let this not blind you to what virtue there is;
many persons strive for high ideals;
and everywhere life is full of heroism.


Be yourself.
Especially, do not feign affection.
Neither be cynical about love;
for in the face of all aridity and disenchantment
it is as perennial as the grass.


Take kindly the counsel of the years,
gracefully surrendering the things of youth.
Nurture strength of spirit to shield you in sudden misfortune.
But do not distress yourself with dark imaginings.
Many fears are born of fatigue and loneliness.
Beyond a wholesome discipline,
be gentle with yourself.


You are a child of the universe,
no less than the trees and the stars;
you have a right to be here.
And whether or not it is clear to you,
no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should.


Therefore be at peace with God,
whatever you conceive [Her] to be,
and whatever your labors and aspirations,
in the noisy confusion of life keep peace with your soul.


With all its sham, drudgery, and broken dreams,
it is still a beautiful world.
Be cheerful.
Strive to be happy.




-Max Ehrmann, Desiderata

From "Age Appropriate" by Philip Schultz

In other words, when evicted from

a strange lobby into a stranger street,

where every scaffold is full

and bodies dangle in the long

blue sorrow of the afternoon,

without context, explanation, or sympathy,

it’s good to know, even momentarily,

how to live, among the relevant,

    the passionate, and the confused.

From "January Drought" by Conor O'Callaghan

I have reservoirs of want enough  
to freeze many nights over.