PROVERBS

    A person's anger should be respected
    even when it isn't shared

    a person's happiness should be shared
    even if it isn't understood

    a person should be understood though
    he has brought both his brows together
    in anger and also suddenly begun to laugh

    a person should be in love most of
    the time this is the last proverb
    and may be learned by all the organs
    capable of bodily response


    ANTI-LOVE POEM

    Sometimes you don't want to love the person you love
    you turn your face away from that face
    whose eyes lips might make you give up anger
    forget insult steal sadness of not wanting
    to love turn away then turn away at breakfast
    in the evening don't lift your eyes from the paper
    to see that face in all its seriousness a
    sweetness of concentration he holds his book
    in his hand the hard-knuckled winter wood
    scarred fingers turn away that's all you can
    do old as you are to save yourself from love


    ON OCCASION

    I forget the names of my friends
    and the names of the flowers in
    my garden my friends remind me
    Grace it's us the flowers just
    stand there stunned by the sun

    A long time ago my mother said
    darling there are also wildflowers
    but look these I planted

    my flowers are pink and rose and
    orange they're sturdy they make
    new petals every day to fill in
    their fat round faces

    suddenly before thought I
    called out ZINNIA zinnia
    zinnia along came a sunny

      summer breeze they swayed
      lightly bowed I said Mother


    FATHERS

    Fathers are
    more fathering
    these days they have
    accomplished this by
    being more mothering

    what luck for them that
    women's lib happened then
    the dream of new fathering
    began to shine in the eyes
    of free women and was
    irresistible

    on the New York subways
    and the mass transits
    of other cities one may
    see fatherings of many colors
    with their round babies on
    their laps this may also
    happen in the countryside
    these scenes were brand new
    exciting for an old woman who
    had watched the old fathers
    gathering once again in
    familiar army camps and com
    fortable war rooms to consider
    the necessary eradication of
    the new fathering fathers
    (who are their sons) as well
    as the women and children who
    will surely be in the way

    why shouldn't men look at women
    and women look at men
    and women look at women
    and men look at men
    why shouldn't they
    size each other up (as
    we used to say)

    why isn't there more
    of that looking that
    casual catching of
    breath in plain
    appreciation or rejection why
    isn't there more of it what
    old people sometimes ex
    perienced as shock and a
    dangerous heartbeat which
    sometimes erupted into
    love at first sight (as
    it is called to this day)
    and as old people we must
    warn it may once in a startling
    while last forever (as it
    is called)


    I MET A WOMAN ON THE PLANE

    she came from somewhere around Tampa
    she was going to Chicago
    I liked her a lot
    she'd had five children
    no she'd had six one died
    at twenty-three days

    people said at least you didn't
    get too...