Selected Poems from Autumn Window
*** Autumn Window, a book of poetry by William Marr, Arbor Hill Press, first editon (1995); second edition (1996)
paperback, 92 poems, 118 pages, ISBN: 0-9637547-9-3 ***
The accents and nuances
are strange to me --
and refreshing.
-- Gwendolyn Brooks
Contents
(Click on any divider between poems to return here.)
Bird Cage
At the Clockshop
Sharing an Umbrella
Vietnam War Memorial
A Post-It Note
A Thinker
Autumn Window
Necktie
Kissing
Inflation
Picasso Died this Morning
Yellow River
Chicago Winter
Floating Flowers
Fashion
Hopscotch
Comments On This Book
Comments On Previous Works
Bird Cage
open
the
cage
let the bird fly
away
and
give
the cage
back
its
freedom
At the Clockshop
Oblivious of time
the clocks on the wall
just keep ticking
and busily going
their own
ways
Sharing an Umbrella
Sharing an umbrella
I suddenly realized the difference between us
Yet bending over to kiss you
gave me such joy
as you tried to meet me halfway
on tiptoe
Vietnam War Memorial
A block of marble
and twenty six letters of the alphabet
enable history to accommodate
so many young names
Wandering alone
an old woman has at last found her only child
amid the mass grave
and with her eyes tightly shut
she is now feeling for the mortal wound
with her trembling fingers
on his ice-cold forehead
A Post-It Note
I've put some
poems
in the icebox
they'll be cold
and sweet
when you get home
A Thinker
Holding his chin
thinking
how to
hold the chin
and watch the computer
do
the thinking
Autumn Window
Now that she is middle-aged, my wife
likes to stand before the window
and comb her hair
Her only makeup a trace of cloud
the landscape of a graceful
poised maturity
Necktie
Before the mirror
he carefully makes himself
a tight knot
to let the hand
of civilization
drag him
on
Kissing
It makes no difference --
your lips kissing my lips
or my lips kissing yours
What's important
is that we still have something to say
to each other
and try to say it
well
Inflation
A bundle of bills
could buy
a flattering
smile
not long ago
Now
a bundle of bills
can buy
more than
one flattering
smile
Picasso Died this Morning
I frittered away the remaining afternoon
and walked up to the window many times
to see if the sky held any last surprise
As it hung over my neighbor's roof
the sun seemed almost
immortal. Picasso died this morning
I don't know what tunes the three musicians are going to play
I don't know which way the dove is going to fly
After showing us the world is still soft and kneadable
the masterly hands are now withdrawing
I reached out unconsciously
but realizing how childish it was
my grasping hands turned to clapping
Reading
As soon as he opens the book
words lead the way
and sentences follow
all disappear in a hurry
Only the best-selling title
and the hotly talked-about name
of the author
remain
What a great book
Yellow River
If you trace up the turbid current
you will find
as any geography book can tell you
the Kunlun Mountains in Qinghai
Yet according to history's bloody accounts
this river
which turns clear at most
once in a thousand years
has its origin in millions of eye sockets
of suffering human beings
Chicago Winter
even steel trembles
so do teeth
red lights burn in turns
at each icy corner
the eyes don't
warm
on two feet
with two hands
pulling down a hat
and tightening the scalp
you greet the wind
Floating Flowers
on my front lawn
a swarm of butterflies
is busily dress-rehearsing
a midsummer day's dream
but merrily chasing each other
in mid-air
the two in bright-yellow
are in no hurry to come down
and take their places
Fashion
Whirling through the revolving door
she finds the fashion she just bought
already out of style
From mini to midi to maxi and
back again
every year she adjusts her legs
as if they were a tripod (bipod?)
And how a dress shrinks and loses
its shape
once it leaves
the model on display
Hopscotch
Standing in the way
of a bullet's joyflight
another little girl's blood
stains the pavement
As she falls
a triumphant smile
crosses her twisted face --
finally she has managed
to plant both feet
neatly
in the chalked squares
Comments On This Book
Verse has never been freer, yet strong discipline is at work...The
human spectrum visible in Autumn Window will make readers
nod, smile and perhaps wipe an eye.
--- Chicago Tribune
A master of lyrical layers along with the beauty and brevity of his
Chinese heritage, he enhances his skill with the spontaneity and
flavor of his adopted American homeland. His humor, insight
and tenderness are universal; his control of such rich
ingredients is sure-handed. Autumn Window is distillation in its
purest form: A delightful wine with a rare bouquet.
--- Glenna Holloway
from the Foreword
Each (poem) is a window opening onto beauty and fluency.
There is every shade of happiness and sadness, anger and peace
in this collection. Their effortless renderings of a civilized mind
in touch with an often mad world are part of their mystery.
--- Li-Young Lee
from the Foreword
Comments On Previous Works
He uses fluently and clearly the language of the common people...
gives profound meaning to common objects and events.
--- The Isle Full of Noises
Modern Chinese Poetry from Taiwan
Columbia University Press
Unquestionably among the best contemporary Chinese poets...
He is unique and without peer in the arena of short poems.
--- Huaxia Poetry (China)
His concise yet highly symbolic poetry, with a deep sense of humanity,
adds a new dimension to the rich tradition of Chinese poetry...
He bridges the gap between new and old,
and between East and West.
--- Hong Kong Literature Monthly
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Copyright © 1996 by William Marr. All rights reserved. Copying and reprinting are permitted so long as credit is given and wording remains unchanged. Not to be sold in any form.
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