Poetry Explorer- Classic Contemporary Poetry, SEMPITERNAL, by JAMES GALVIN


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Classic and Contemporary Poetry

SEMPITERNAL, by                 Poet Analysis     Poet's Biography
First Line: Out at sea the sun / was shining
Last Line: North each time .
Subject(s): Sea; Silver; Sun; Water; Whales; Ocean


Out at sea the sun
was shining,
but only in one place,
like a silver dish
on the rain-darkened water.
A single whale,
sated with love,
steaming north from Baja,
was too distant to see,
but we could

see where he was breathing:
a tree made of water
and filled with silver light
appeared on the air,
already falling,
and after a whale-breath,
reappeared --
the selfsame form --
a little farther
north each time.


Used with the permission of Copper Canyon Press, P.O. Box 271, Port Townsend, WA
98368-0271, www.cc.press.org




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