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Tuesday 23 February 2010

By the Sound


.

http://tomraworth.com/xiv.jpg




Scarlatti on the quarterdeck
the Sevillano

pungent oranges
bright green wings

Spanish brandy

impatience
but the wave wash

rushing of wind among red cedars

and continuous soft sound of

Indian polishing
otter canoe

glassy hull

for silent running

up beach
like foghorn

Some small bird calling from sleep




http://tomraworth.com/sky.jpg





Tonight (14.2.10): photo by Tom Raworth, 2010
Sky (1.1.10): photo by Tom Raworth, 2010

5 comments:

STEPHEN RATCLIFFE said...

Dear Tom,

Two beautiful poems here, and photos -- where'd he (the other Tom) take them, do you know? Maybe he sent them to you thinking they might 'appear' here, possible accompaniment to your words? Sea sagas seem to continue (!) -----

2.23

grey whiteness of sky above black plane
of ridge, motion of shadowed green leaf
in foreground, sound of wave in channel

enclosure and cover, become
the concealed as such

part itself, next connected
back to it, expansion

silver of sunlight reflected in channel,
white clouds in blue of sky above ridge

TC said...

Steve,

The concealed and the open, the connected and the expanding, the poem as a whole and as a part of the whole.

As to enclosure, see the post above, with its small list of fateful verbs.

TR walks out to the ocean each morning from his residence in Brighton.

Whence these magnificent photos derive, with his gracious permission.

TC said...

Well, a bit daft of me not to add that it is apparent TR walks out to the edge of the sea at evening as well, as these are all sunsets.

Steve, the continuity of image flow, affected by light and weather, from a single seaside vantage, would perhaps relate your poetic sequence to Tom's ongoing photographic project.

"The sea, as you know, is a mind-trap.... plot-less t.v. But the changes still interest and the sky always has its moments."

So sayeth the skillful photographer.

STEPHEN RATCLIFFE said...

Tom,
Yes, another 'coincidence' of the parallel universes we inhabit, "inclose" (in your "small list of fateful verbs") showing up the same day as "enclosure" here -- just 'accident'? (the "enclosure" and "concealed" in those lines come from Heidegger.) Thanks for that note on TR's photos -- didn't KNOW that (!) good to think he's doing something of what I'm doing on the west coast of another continent (he might be interested to see these poems going up on the blog, I should send him a note. . . .).

TC said...

Stephen,

Well, my list of fateful verbs came from Marvell's Horatian Ode.

Marvell had his Caesar in Cromwell, Heidegger had his in Hitler.

Render unto Caesar the terms that are apt.