Poems

From Novel J’s

(poem ascribed to the Frenchman, Jean-Claude, l970, Translated 2019)

Seul?
Qui, je suis seul,..mais,il n’y a
aucun difference entre moi et
les autres

Tout le monde nait seul, meurt seul.
Mais il y a des amis, comme toi.
Tu viens et nous partageons
le pain et le vin
Puis, bien que nous soyons seul, nous ne
sommes pas
solitaires.

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German poem: Feeling Thence to Nowhere

(Herfliehend ins Nirgends) written at 23. Translated in 2018 by Jacob C. Schaubs and Xuxu Song

Fleeing thence to Nowhere

The pastor stepped slowly into the night,
From the high mountain looking out
Faces of people lying
On the earth, screaming in pain.

Read the full poem

Johanna’s comment: Thanksgiving, 2018 Your existential phase captured:
in German, yet. The poem feels – heavy, dark without respite, existential despair, the end of faith, unrelieved darkness. Good job capturing the grim, never-ending blackness….:) (nice to be able to write this from nearly 50 years later!!)

Touchstone (2005)

by D Shapiro with comments by J Shapiro

Under a football scoreboard, a weekly stretching of legs, waist high,
    before and after jogging.
A shoe touches one scratched broken ½” scarred indent, of a steel pole.
No one knows our connection, and one day all that will be left is
    A scarred indent that the sole no longer touches.

J: (2018) This poem about your sole on the pole is pretty poignant. Oh, sad! I wonder, will your pole miss your sole?:-)

A Temporary Respite

by D Shapiro with comments by J Shapiro (10/22/18)

Brown pine needles , tree
Aging….five crows land on limbs…
Still provides respite

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