winding of it gets into your walk, your hands,
your face and eyes.
Pass, Friend
The doors of the morning must open.
The keys of the night are not thrown away.
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I who have loved morning know its doors.
I who have loved night know its keys.
Alone and Not Alone
          I
There must be a place
a room and a sanctuary
set apart for silence
for shadows and roses
holding aware in walls
the sea and its secrets
gong clamor gone still
in a long deep sea-wash
aware always of gongs
vanishing before shadows
of roses repeating themes
of ferns standing still
till wind blows over them:
great hunger may bring these
into one little room
set apart for silence
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              II
There must be substance here
related to old communions of
hungering men and womenâ
brass is a hard lean metal
gold is the most ductile metalâ
they speak to each other not often
they melt and fuse
only in the crucible of this communion
only in the dangers of high momentsâ
they moan as mist before wind
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                 III
The shuttlings of dawn color go soft
weaving out of the night of black ice
with crimson ramblers
up the latticed ladders of daytime arriving.
The riders of the sea    the long white horses
they send their plungers obedient to the moon
in a dedicated path of foam and rainbows.
The praise of any slow red moonrise should be
                          slow.
There are storm winds who bow down to
                          nothing.
They go on relentless under command and
                          release
sent out to do their hammering whirls of storm.
There are sunset flames inviting prayer and
                          sharing.
There are time pieces having silence between
                          chimes.
Children of the wind keep their childish ways.
The wisps of blue in a smoke wreath are mortal.
The keepers of wisdom testify a heap of ashes
means whatever was there went out burning.
Wingtip
The birdsâare they worth remembering?
Is flight a wonder and one wingtip a
space marvel?
When will man know what birds know?
Love Is a Deep and a Dark and a Lonely
love is a deep and a dark and a lonely
and you take it deep take it dark
and take it with a lonely winding
and when the winding gets too lonely
then may come the windflowers
and the breath of wind over many flowers
winding its way out of many lonely flowers
waiting in rainleaf whispers
waiting in dry stalks of noon
wanting in a music of windbreaths
so you can take love as it comes keening
as it comes with a voice and a face
and you make a talk of it
talking to yourself a talk worth keeping
and you put it away for a keen keeping
and you find it to be a hoarding
and you give it away and yet it stays hoarded
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like a book read over and over again
like one book being a long row of books
like leaves of windflowers bending low
and bending to be never broken
Almanac
Scrutinize the Scorpion constellation
and see where a hook of stars
ends with a lonely star.
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Go to the grey sea horizon
and ask for a message
and listen and wait.
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See whether the conundrums
of a heavy land fog
either sing or talk.
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Let only a small cry come
in behalf of a clean sunrise:
the sun performs so often.
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Speak to the