New and Selected Poems 1974-2004 by Carl Dennis

Author:Carl Dennis
Language: eng
Format: epub, azw3
Publisher: PENGUIN group
Published: 2016-08-11T14:10:42+00:00

Mildew

Till now a subject mentioned only as a metaphor

To stand for mustiness in the soul.

But here we have the genuine article

Growing on the north wall of my neighbor’s house

That’s cost him too much already in upkeep.

Black streaks over blue paint that was guaranteed

Against fungus of all kinds, returning each fall

After its spring treatment of bleach.

He scrubbed the bottom story himself

And would have done the rest if the gutter

He’d tried to unclog last fall

Hadn’t pulled loose, spooking him about ladders.

Black streaks and a musty smell in the guest room

That stumps the experts. Long before now

He guessed he was only a transient on the planet.

Now it’s clear his house is a transient too,

Though this evening its lights are burning warmly.

In a minute his Thanksgiving guests will arrive

Having outdone themselves with their walnut stuffing,

Having added new stories to their portfolios.

Their cheerful, spirited talk will fill the kitchen.

He won’t interrupt to ask if they can explain

Why his is the only house on the block

With a mildew problem. Bad luck, maybe,

Though in an earlier era it would be a warning

To turn from a world he’s loved too much.

But what other world steps forward now

To offer its services? And even if it did,

What deserves more of his gratitude

Than his clapboard guardian against wind and rain,

A basement haven for Ping-Pong on winter evenings,

An attic skylight for reattaching to stars

The names washed off by the daily drizzle?

Mildew creeps to the house unseen and suddenly

Scales the walls. But not for him anymore

The temptation of the underground passage

Past the enemy line to a hidden harbor

Where he can still imagine a rowboat waiting.

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