Friday, August 3, 2012

Three Mediocre College Poems



With a title like that, how can you not want to read this entry?! Reverse psychology, I tell you.

Yes, here are three of my aforementioned college poems -- these admittedly not Wakoskian, because they're so short, and offered here because of that brevity. I was 19 or 20 when they were written.

------

After a Rain

i went out into the wet yard
and it was gray and green --
my feet hissed through the grass
                                                 water cold
and leaves clung to my damp shoes,
staying there
even when i went inside
a few minutes later.

(1986)

---------------

Soup Bowls

Smooth and deep

Around

Flowing and silent steam
Over knurled rim

Pipe
Pour
Stir

Until running low
Cold

And stroked with soap,
Clean again and
Upon one another.

(June 1987)

---------------

Haiku: Night

I often hear my
Breathing at night, and wonder
If it's really me.

(Feb. 1987)


(Photo: The carousel at South Bank, on July 9.)

7 comments:

Elizabeth said...

The last one made me smile -- I can see you as a very young man, writing that.

Bravo.

Ms. Moon said...

I really especially love the haiku. Who hasn't felt that? You made a poem of it.

The Bug said...

I like the haiku too, but this made me sizzle:

And stroked with soap,
Clean again and
Upon one another.

:)

e said...

I smiled too, remembering those days...The haiku is my favourite.

Linda Sue said...

LOVE love LOVE! All three! Of course I am partial to Haiku and that one hits me right in the middle- So accurate and simple- universal. I do hope that you have continued writing Haiku. Excellent! Made my day!

Steve Reed said...

Thanks for the feedback, everybody! It's so funny to go back and look at something you wrote a long time ago. It doesn't even seem like it's yours, you know? In some ways it's not, thanks to age and life experience.

Linda Sue, I haven't written a haiku in years and years. Maybe I should give it a whirl one of these days!

Lynne said...

I loved all three! You should really do more of these.