[New-Poetry] Re: favorite Kay Ryan poems

[Dave Bonta]

Here's one of my favorite Ryan poems:

OSPREY

The great taloned osprey
nests in Scotland.
Her nest's the biggest
thing around, a spiked basket
with hungry ugly osprey offspring 
in it. For months she sits on it.
He fishes, riding two-pound salmon
home like rockets. They get
all the way there before they die,
so muscular and brilliant
swimming through the sky.



I still can't bring myself to refer to the Poetry Consultant to the Librarian of Congress as Poet Laureate - what an absurd conceit! But if it brings public attention to great poetry, what the hell. And some of the Poetry Consultants have come up with fairly nifty poetry-promotion schemes, I guess. I'd like to see someone use the position to bring attention and funding to the effort to save endangered languages (and hence oral poetry traditions) in the the U.S.

Dave Bonta
PO Box 68
Tyrone, PA  16686
814.684.3113
http://www.vianegativa.us


> 
> My longstanding favorite Ryan poem:
> 
> Blandeur
> 
> 
> If it please God,
> let less happen.
> Even out Earth's
> rondure, flatten
> Eiger, blanden
> the Grand Canyon.
> Make valleys
> slightly higher,
> widen fissures
> to arable land,
> remand your
> terrible glaciers
> and silence
> their calving,
> halving or doubling
> all geographical features
> toward the mean.
> Unlean against our hearts.
> Withdraw your grandeur
>  From these parts.
> 
> -- Kay Ryan.  Say Uncle.  Grove Press, 2000.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> ========================================
> David Graham
> grahamd at ripon.edu
> 
> Home Page:
> http://web.mac.com/drjazz
> 
> Poetry Library:
> http://web.mac.com/drjazz/iWeb/Site/DGPoLibrary.html
> ==========================================
>