Poetry Explorer- Classic Contemporary Poetry, NIGHT CRY, by KAREN SWENSON


Poetry Explorer

Classic and Contemporary Poetry

NIGHT CRY, by                     Poet's Biography
First Line: The radiator taps like a frantic blind man
Last Line: A crocheted cap for a stillborn baby.
Subject(s): Babies; Death; Infants; Dead, The


The radiator taps like a frantic blind man.
Do not weep in the night. Please. Do not cry.
Some dread lies furtive between blocks and clay -
my sparrow heart, tell me that I too may sleep,

but you only draw my hand against your face.
Five stones into the river's current
you know I am no shield
against the cat claw of dream.
I will only say it is not true,
and you are uninterested in candied placebos.

You release my hand. Allowing me to retreat,
fatuous as my flowered robe, to my own darkness.
You send my wraith to bed uncomforted,
a crocheted cap for a stillborn baby.





Discover our Poem Explanations and Poet Analyses!


Other Poems of Interest...
Home: PoetryExplorer.net