At Close of Day
I have met them at close of day
neither named nor unknown,
not force of will
nor desire. Perhaps
prayer. Not capsized
nor at sea. Not still, perhaps
held.
You said,
at the end, you wanted
to keep your eyes open,
to miss nothing.
I miss you. Not entreaty
nor regret. Not future
nor past: these always last.
Of course, touch and warm
weight. Of course
breath and again. Of course
what word can be heard.
Not loss
nor absence. Perhaps
soul. Not inside
nor outside: dusk’s
doorway. Not
alone.
Poetry Ireland Review Issue 116:
A WB Yeats Special Issue
This essential Yeats anniversary publication is edited by Vona Groarke and includes responses to Yeats’s legacy and readings of his poems from public figures as diverse as Bill Whelan, Neil Jordan, Colm Tóibín, Frank McGuinness, Mary Costello and John Banville, along with new poems responding to Yeats’s work by Irish and international poets such as Margaret Atwood, Sharon Olds, Philip Schultz, Sinéad Morrissey and Harry Clifton. The issue also includes Yeats’s poetry collections, reviewed by leading poets as if just published. Now also available in hardback.
"superb special edition" John Boland, Irish Independent
» Subscribe now to ensure you receive a copy
» Order a paperback now
» Order the hardback now