"We must have the courage, as Kierkegaard says, to think a thought whole."--Roethke
I.This epigraph is three-deep
It is lately accessible to those
who read my bulletin board.
Three-deep is not right anymore,
in that case, and besides,
I was told about this quotation
by someone else, who wanted me
to know. It was an act of love.
II.On one corner of my desk is a rock
It is quartz with traces of rust and dirt.
I have an unspoken agreement with myself
as to which side is up and which is down.
Sometimes I set it more heavily than necessary
upon the things I will take to the main office.
Sometimes it is the mail I'm sending out. My
son gave me the rock, and he sometimes asks
about it. I would use it anyway, now,
I believe.
III.On the same corner of my desk
I started smoking it in St. Louis
when my sons were traveling with me.
the bit is black plastic;
the bowl, a reddish-brown briar.
A shiny, tin-colored collar separates or joins them.
It is a marked contrast to the tall white rock.
IV.Two oranges I have kept here for weeks,