Three Poems
By Corey Mesler
An Incident Near the College
As J. R. R Tolkien
walked the hills surrounding
his home near Oxford
a small stranger silently trailed
him. When he turned
he was startled. The little fellow
took out a pipe and
motioned toward a tuft of grass.
“J.R., sit,” he said, smiling
puckishly, “I’ve got a long story
to tell you.”
Ariose Morning
The rain
cannot
dampen
today as
words connect
in me like
DNA
and the songs
my children
sang
leaving the house
echo
inside me
like ancient
liturgies.
For My Daughter Who is Already Radiant
What can I hope for you,
to not be beautiful?
You whose legs are already
shapely at five, you
who have your mother’s easy
is a place of barbed wire and
injustice for those fair,
for those who carry such
finery. Yet, Chloe, I look at
you and see the angels’
modeling clay; I see the
loveliness of September.
I can only hope love, a fickle
suitor, finds you early,
finds you wholeheartedly.
I, who must watch from a
distance, the oblivion ha ha,
onward rush of nature,
who must be witness and father,
tough enough, tough enough.
Corey Mesler has published in numerous journals and anthologies. His novel, Talk: A Novel in Dialogue, was released in 2002. He also has a number of poetry chapbooks available. His second novel, We Are Billion-Year-Old Carbon, is just out. He has been nominated for a Pushcart numerous times. He has 5 more chapbooks set to appear in 2006. With his wife, he runs Burke’s Book Store in Memphis TN. He can be found at www.burkesbooks.com.