photo by Peter Berger
Leaving the Tavern
How long should my morning
be? They've never known
who I am but
I don't feel time's gone too fast
slow enough to fit the spirit in.
Sun brings gold to the right side
of all the people's faces,
half of the muscles used to smile.
Travelled through, based on a
true story, cliff surface or the cave wall,
how quickly does bamboo grow?
Two inches per hour.
Then after sixty days never grows
in height or diameter again.
A truckload of walnuts
tells the tale of flirtations,
immune from the hazard of rebirth.
Heaven told me/us,
the sky told me
the arch is the dragon's mouth,
Thursday is orange, Friday is blue,
brick tea, silver and silk.
The heart doesn't have to fight
gravity to get blood back.
Take height
under the floating hip.
Mind your head.
The deer is loose.
Veal ribs in
Coca Cola.
Deep-fried tench.
We have these ingredients.
The head cleared, and then all of a sudden,
the king was an infant,
the peace feelers that were
already being extended,
strong enough to blow the tiles
off the roof of the church.
_________________________________________________
Donald Berger is the author of The Long Time, a bilingual edition in English and German (Wallstein Publishers); Quality Hill (Lost Roads Publishers), and The Cream-Filled Muse (Fledermaus Press). His work has appeared in The New Republic, Slate, Conjunctions, Colorado Review, Fence, TriQuarterly, The Iowa Review and other magazines including some from Berlin, Leipzig, Budapest, Hong Kong, and mainland China. He teaches at Johns Hopkins University.
"Leaving the Tavern" includes the word "floating," which is the very word I would use to describe many of Berger's poems. His poems glide over wondrous landscapes of language and place, offering mysterious information at every turn. To hear him read several other poems, check out these videos:
Great poems, great to hear them read in a tavern!
Posted by: Christopher J Mason | July 05, 2020 at 08:14 PM
appreciate berger's poetry, and your appreciation of his poetry terence
Posted by: lally | July 05, 2020 at 09:27 PM
Thanks, Michael.
Posted by: Terence Winch | July 06, 2020 at 05:51 AM
Thanks, Christopher J.
Posted by: Terence Winch | July 06, 2020 at 05:52 AM
Don Berger is among the secret gods of American poetry. Great to see his cover blown.
Posted by: eli gottlieb | July 06, 2020 at 10:39 AM
Thanks, Eli. Yes: Don is a natural.
Posted by: Terence Winch | July 06, 2020 at 11:04 AM
Terence Winch may be the BAP website's most dependable dowser of verse. I knew nothing (my bad) about Donald Berger or his poetry until this blog entry. I loved reading "Leaving the Tavern" and the poems recited by Don on video. What a treat! To Terence, I quote from Stephen Sondheim's song "Move On": "Give us more to see." Keep them coming, Terence, and deep thanks for what you have already given us: Don Berger and so many other poets deserving wider recognition.
Posted by: Earle R. Hitchner III | July 09, 2020 at 07:56 AM
Thanks, Earl. There will be more to come.
Posted by: Terence Winch | July 09, 2020 at 08:09 AM
Thank you for this exemplary introduction to the work of a fine poet who deserves to be much better known. -- DL
Posted by: The Best American Poetry | July 10, 2020 at 11:44 AM
This is an incredibly powerful poem.
Posted by: Matt | July 25, 2020 at 12:38 PM