Poem of the Day
Yellow Striped Pajamas
By Shamsher Bahadur Singh
walking silently on his paws, he emerges from the semidarkness and disappears into it.
walking silently on his paws, he emerges from the semidarkness and disappears into it.
Here, where confusion flowered in the rains‚
The whip-mad captains steered for Teneriffe.
Their cargo was a cry. Knouts in the sheds
Two verticals lie down,
each to the other, a horizon,
each to the other,
1. Fat Man
(Shokado)
Clearly, the man eats too much.
Deception is necessary. Disguises, too.
When I wrap this cloak around me,
I change into a barefoot, pious fellow
How strange to be sitting in this room,
to be noticing the windows — clearer than air—
how they let in everything, the leaves,
Sitting and writing on the dining room table,
I want to tell you what it is to be alive,
the yellow oilcloth table takes the imprint
Give us this day. Exhale the little thank you words, they’re quick, slip out our pores, clean hair. A shower. Soap and aspirin. Thank you. Whoever “you” might be.
A queer mist stands from the sea today,
A queer color like the primary blue
Supposed but never limed in the environs
The blonde carrying the tote bag full of bones
Is dressed in a chiffon blouse printed with
Persimmon-colored butterflies
A gather of apricots fruit pickers left
gleam like reasons for light going higher, higher;
I look half as hard as I can to tease