April 2006 Archives

Epilogue to Unholy Sonnets
by Mark Jarman

Today is fresh, and yesterday is stale.
Today is fast, and yesterday is slow.
Today is yes, and yesterday is no.
Today is news, and yesterday's a tale.
The grave is empty. Last night, it was full.
The glorious means of death was once a shame.
Someone is God who had a common name
that you might give a child or animal.
It happens overnight. The world is changed.
The bottles in the cellar all decant.
The stars sign the new cosmos at a slant
and everybody's plans are rearranged.
Today we meet our maker, in a flash
that turns the ash of yesterday to flesh.