Never Before

Never before, I swear

did sun flash so superbly

spreading out generous yellow

into the lids of my eyes.

Never before the keen stretch

of snowsound to my soles

crunched up, folding, swirling,

running white tide to my ankles,

fleecing cold sea to my feet.

Never before the subway,

so noise-happy chugging in joy,

panting and leaping quick danger

shriek-laughing, tumbling merrily on.

Never before such faces

crowding with beauty the earth -

lean, plump, wrinkled, untouched,

the mother, the machine slave, the dissipate,

the pure, the wearied, the indifferent,

the young girl dreaming again of her lover

(he came with such gladdening arms)

the weak and the gentle, the hungry,

the suffering, the insomniac,

the little boys with high squeaky voices

(they look out calm unperturbed,

they see all, unabashed, unaffected) ...

so close to me, warm to me

crowding me with their beauty,

the sun splitting down on my shoulders and sides,

the earth moving under my feet,

myself marvelling,