Some Music
for J.A.

Again, I am as a listening child
When another plays his instrument
Wild, being a composition, or verse.
Picking out tossed down letters

Because it is our want at night
To keep the world from sleep
Alone, he and I
Light effigies upon the sky

To make a lovely show
That great peasant tradition, or
One merely human bent on magic
To touch, love, logic.

We sigh in the presence of so much
Elegance, poise, precision of touch:
A music already filled with pauses,
A carpet on which blossoms

A lotus of smiles, a spring feast.
Selected from a cheerful dish, the best
Cherry from the cherry orchard
Rejuvenates the weak in spirit.