Ron Padgett▐ I saw the lovely sky

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I saw the lovely sky, blue and bright.
If only I were a little bird
Inwardly firm, so I might
Delight myself with lovely sights.
The huntman’s out to kill us who pecked at his fruit.
How clearly the moonlight speaks to me:
You will find the right words
To gaze on the earth from a dazzling height!
What can be the real difference?
Difference?
O fate, O sad duty,
O mankind, O life, what does it mean?
They grumble toward heaven,
But ah, who will lay me in it?
Being already up there
In the deep, deep grave
Of the stars
—Ron Padgett, from “Homage to Franz Schubert.”
Illustration credit Naftali Beder.


▐ from theparisreview