William Butler Yeats
Narcissus with cataracts
We can’t speak of a man admiring himself in the water without raising the specter of Narcissus, the beautiful young man of Greek myth who fell in love with his own reflection. He stared at his image in a pond until he died of starvation.
MorePoem twins, part 7: Happy men
And twenty minutes more or less
It seemed, so great my happiness,
That I was blessed and could bless.
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Clap hands for a more youthful reflection
I’m trying to get my old men/sad men poems posted before the end of January—I got waylaid by a broken laptop and a too-long repair job (truly the techno-dog ate my homework)—so to keep things moving along I’ll post two short poems today and the longer ones by Friday. Then I can say fare-thee-well to the […]
MoreSixth annual Valentine’s Blitz meets a glitch
The sixth annual Poem Elf Valentine’s Day Poem Blitz ran into some glitches this year, which is why it’s arriving so late. I knew it was going to be a few hours late because I’m on Hawaii time, but I didn’t expect (who does) to wake up on Valentine’s Day and discover my purse was […]
MoreErin Go Bragh-humbug
Although I’m an Irish lass by genes and inclination, my idea of a St. Patrick’s Day celebration is soda bread, black tea and Yeats. (If there’s an Irish version of “Bah humbug,” insert here.) Needless to say, I celebrate alone. But I left some poems by Yeats at the local Irish pub for those whose […]
MoreTurn back, oh Maud
When You Are Old by William Butler Yeats When you are old and gray and full of sleep, And nodding by the fire, take down this book, And slowly read, and dream of the soft look Your eyes had once, and of their shadows deep; How many loved your moments of […]
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