• e o e o evo ove o evo e o e I l J PS 8527 !32 L6 1974 J BROCK 1 -R rr Ll BRARY Q IRED THRO GH D Pll TE E H CE ove a book of remembrances •• Nichol ' ETROPOLITAN TOR~~·TO CE It- Lf~. - L ,y Literature copyright 0 1974 bp Ni chol pub lished with assistance from the Canada Council talon books 201 1019 east cordova vancouver british columbia v6a 1m8 canada This book was typeset by Dwight Gardiner and printed by Gordon Fidler in September, 1974. First printing: September 1974 ISBN 0-88922-038-7 MA~ 2 4 1975 for margaret av1son & earle birney "Whe(e one or two have won: (The silver reaches of the estuary)." ghosts I . . "" ... ' • .. ... , / - • • • • -J ' • I • • - ~- , I " ~ I I / , / I , . f :/.£ l /~. • I I ~ , ·'' , I .,, ~I I 1 J. J J . ~ I (. ( /, L" I / { } .• . , ( • f t' ~· t / ...(•.)' J, l I I t ~ I t • • - • • • • , • t • - • - / \ • • frames I \..J ~ 0 AM AM!~ 0 0 0 0 0 0 -..(' +~i~ i~ +l"t lpo..<.e be..,wee"" F. . ~t e I0 ·~ i"'_l.,.,.etA. t'l.e .sLty •~ lolvt'. Soo..-. 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I 6 love poems STILLS 1 a cloud h probably nothing happens 2 a man in front of a mirror an h in front of an m everything is on its side something whistles 3 .. for steve mcCaffery 0 h later an e appears 4 here there is a w if i wait long enough it floats away 5 u e w r I m n o p q 6 r r r e s I p t u no 7 how high is a question up duclm v t 8 elbow the room is still window w q 9 I I II 10 moon cloud window green up up up t 11 a a a 12 the sun or a circle 0 b maybe a cloud floats thru 13 one more for steve mcCaffery e e e e e e e e e e e e f 14 sun moon h h 15 a longer line intersects green someth1ng colored red , where an h should be there is an m mstead 16 0 0 0 later a Iine appears p? d? q? b? feb 20/ 71 C L OVE R 1 h h h m I p r s t u v w r b I t c q c q r r rrrr u another u if if am IS . am IS blue blue blue neither is each other if green is red there is white if blue is yell ow there 1s green h now 1 1s m something which 1s useless floats away mmmmmmm mmmmmmm i being black there is white w or q perhaps an I or a z here someone pauses to breathe e IS taken a breath th b bbb b bbb d q m n p s J v q q q a line lingers something which is not a letter in the middle of a sky neither grey nor blue white white white white white white white white white t a b or a b or white white white white white white a line which is someone a circle that becomes a color that doesn't fit e or f m n m n 0 0 0 0 a sky an h a I i ne that intersects a circle black black black black blue a green that becomes a red a yellow that lingers an h o r a P maybe an m agam an n or a ti el d that is green a sky that is blue an h that is broken 000000000000000 ww ww t w w u v 2 s s s v t u I m p p t r p s s a s b s a a a a a smnoaa s s sssssssss bjkrtuvadl pmnolsrwpt 0 v w e e gqlkkk k t s r p n m n m n n n m m m o p I m n o opens x is a I i ne u i is cut the a discarded t p S X z z z z V 3 c m n o able sky a white that t t t u I o r b green s o blue but able able to be abl e b c d e firalmx IS white a b a b be able to be c or w or unable to be a be b be h be a or v or blue green white green green blue white white blue white blue green green green green next to o a t or e d f the cloud the w or sky or mrfhij lololmno the w suspended the I removed everything becomes itself d t s r t jlvqmnaf shciztzkg maybe an o 1tsel f four times green green green green unable to be o be c be d be h1slqrk be I be x be no the sky the h or the m e belong~ng to another f f clouds a green sky blue being blue there 1s h or m or an h that IS h an 1 that is i something wh1ch 1s ne1ther y w or q m n o tsbdlm n o t d b t c r r a blank spot something which is not d I p t q r s v k m n o 0 0 a man rs runnrng c an empty sky a bird q a strange moon a different sun I ight q I white the able blue d m o b c r whispering white blue white blue green red blue yellow white white green c d c d n n 0 the sun 0 the clou d 0 the bird 0 the man h h h h feb 22 - 25/ 71 HEAVEN & HELL 1 h h white h h the h the the th e heaven height where the h h h hard when oh help h h h h h heat heaven hard h the when when when 2 white hold three e1ght sleigh shingle thumb thunder whine white theme shunt shunt 3 whether 4 simply ever backwards an opening gone g noting 5 halleleu jah halleleujah halleleu jah halleleujah this then this then this that the other halleleu jah halleleujah thin whistling AGAINST EXPLANATION oh the a be an or and and c c d q 0 p stops whistle up gorge leg laughter m I steep Ia lune Ia lune low I t s z vvobqr Ia tigre 1 y w moon JUne spoon A SMALL SONG THAT IS HIS adore adore adore adore an opentng an o an h a leg a table or a window & a w a sky that is d a lake that is f e d e f f f f f d d e e e d f f e f e f e f e me you or me or i h & d m e e f d 0 d f h e w f f e w h d 0 w d f THRUSH TH ROAT GRIEF - 1 mrne in sticks CriSIS SIX . p1 prng srng . suspens1on certain tensions telescoping something which 1s hidden .I h I. 2 everyone enters something everything becomes then end begin each one three 5 7 8 9 10 WHY? 3 absolutely always you younger yet hey! (maybe) 4 oh today opens tomorrow closes swoon top older troop overt folding fold dock obviously old overtly young • oblivious mother port possible women bold pole polite sloop shone shone 5 up under thumb punch you supper lucky cup muddle muddle puddle thru blue cut hump pun nun nouveau true out louvered run touch pup mud stun stumble stump crumble out out 6 pa.d c ver age awfully glad at that any way at all anyway and mavbc awful awful awful yass yassll per haps (later a dream a statement meant as lately later late March 9/71 MUSIC do m1 d o m i do mi Ia so I a s o d ra fa mi so Ia ti tilaafirm s 0 s 0 s ti do TRANS- CONTINENTAL l an h moves pas l an m an i becomes an r someone lhr ows a snowball 0 p r s lJ v v v t w . .I I. I 2 X d one mile a sky which is grey blue do not serve your self I e 4 3 1 2 2 3 z zero then nothing 3 6 9 10 13 5 here a z becomes an e becomes an m a w 4 a d in a cloudbank an r by c: sea perhaps it 1s a river passes over sky sun a town in which the r becomes an I 5 a drainage ditch an o white white white on a pole in a field white white grey two trees three or four est ouest est cinq est sept est huite huite huite 6 this many miles from home r becomes everything s t t a p z t m n n o q I r v s c d g later there IS hope or lessness perhaps you dream t v n h I p z w a b 7 ness lng ch th sl le e a rock1ng mot1on a creakmg sound an ack a ly 8 crump cnng kasno alty y . J a t b vtlmnqop b b c d e g p tvajkl m n m n o p n o p a b c d r f q v z p 9 snow s 0 0 0 w n o s n n n n a white field a green (dark darker than dark est a blue that is grey an e climbs up thru the cloudy sky overwhelms me 10 . J r k t o v m I s me you or we 11 up & down wavey www wwww m n u u n mm p the sky turns greyer turns erer whtte & black dark green a t crossed by an h resembles nothing more than resembling tngtng rrrrrr 12 37-3 an h that is beyond me turns brown turns around h or h i t hen t pause 39 today the weather is not fine yesterday it was worse 152 nothing to do but dream d g m v 13 snow at the window white room blue blue blue blue blue blue blue blue bluer dark green & white straight with branches bending g or h or grey white grey white grey white wind a sun which is hidden a t in a snowbank h h h h an I that insists itself insists itself insists 14 hornpayne to armstrong h to a ha! ah ah ah ah t u v m I k r s p stops s to s bless this 15 a lake in a snowstorm m's in clumps o's & h 's pile together maybe an occasional a perhaps a t a sentence occurs ending with the pronou n me 16 there IS too much wh1te too many h's I ife hoi ds too much s or m t b j f m t t's pile-up on t's r's are scattered an s I ies broken the corner of th1s room 1n 17 a y by a road a lake or a sea w heat wheat wheat brown among white a fence a fancy fold a hill i r k a lady light light light 18 a right a left a flat latitude fat laugh a t h or e here a longer line erupts su ddenly my toes are pointed west my heels are pointed east c 19 d b f g e r z t I m 0 0 p d q b locdkrn y t v z q p I o r i k b o m q I I b c d y j f r t m p h y t 20 empty eyes empty skres 7. z y V X X W w v v u u t t s s bless thrs i drd say yes yes yes r drd say i drd say bless this yes bless this yes bless yes yes 21 three deer a field a road that ends where h begins two t's agam a w a q an ordinary o later a z a P a frcld where horses prssed yellow yellow 22 trees that are white not brown with snow falling down a footprint an a everything rises a circle a stadium a town a place where the road is brown not white voices i cannot hea r h e I wainwright 23 now there is a mountain big not small dark not Iight soon there is a sun setting a green tree a memory of a time not now h gone brown falling to a c d rises r sets the sooner the I the later it gets 24 4 3 in a row 0 1 2 I t q r farther than f g c d c d I m n o I m n o p repeated not forseen dreams in which the dreamer dreams a dreamer dreams a dreamer dreams a dreamer dreaming 25 m m m an n which slants disappears 1n o u w u m m m n u v 0 grey sky i wonder why tear blue like you c 0 k . J r J u 26 if there is lack of light is there no light lack is black height is white why 1s h always h now it is now t Z y X b r v m n I hell o yesterday had a dream last night slept with the blind up u t m d I I I 27 o dreaming I sets r rises black blue blue blue even the whi tc tu 111s green purple black black black black back to blue . e nses no e does not rise it is a dream somewhere on this train ryme schemes 28 g in a station going white wheat in a pool number 8 7 a line that doesn't fit 6 in a row g 29 more music less o balance a pair of opposites that don't attract t a height of m a weight of b of a & do i know you? no! a z or a p or an f 30 just another just another broken heart half-hearted dream just another h another h another t 31 1n9 . 1n9er on9o1n9 undone a vo1ce that is soft is h or r accent a book that IS full 1s empty I z j q 9 f 9 {unfinished another vo1ce m s a b d no choice of z} 32 e's in a cloud voices that distract e or e or e fgadlmk r s o b j a distant v a hum a lady who is glum IS sad things ain't so bad r n or p 33 eyes in the dark red not white a starting point th at is not right an observation in a train station a standing around an h left lying on the ground I 34 m m z t p q y r k k k j a h i w o p d a I b m z h r J r is that right? yes it fits a narrow 1 a thin t an n that disappears an m an I a g 35 a fantasy that fails to erupt a disappointment a sad pup a happy kitten two children asleep in the same bunk an h by an m by a t an here there is a v1s1on a choir sings aile leu ia alleleu ia alleleu ia 36 a longing for flesh a flash of long a lingering look a languid mood an I in a pool of pepsi a cola an a (thinks) something stops something begins rocking I to m nothing in between is z is v is q is d z to a ldhzq tj 37 dark where there should be light hot pants cold thots an r ringed in mist later an s then a t if only the moon came up the I would rise settles on my shoulders mood 38 a trance state a continental trance Je ne sa1s pas mons1eur je ne sais pas madame hello in the morning goodbye in the afternoon it has been h or w knowing you y or m it has been z t u v I k . . J r J 39 a face above a mountain an m above a c ljrupk mszyvbd i al ready said that it is a snow cloud an f day a q g r a fish rn a rrver too cold to sw1m rn an absence of crowds 40 a saint a gesture in the sky an m on a mountaintop a sequ ence of o's a catalogue a heaven a vision of v1s1on h s t I q r m 41 a new beginning an ending a slowing down a speeding up an arc m a park an f in a rainstorm 2's or 3's 4 5 7 a leaning back a fal ling forward tree stumps 42 a needl e a f ir an e l y jkm n 0 z w u v t m n n k s I . . smg 1ng a bell on a breast a bl essed beast bust J or h k or m 43 hair that is blonde is long a dirty hand a Iand that 1s Iost forgotten a little girl that's fng htened a mood of g a presence of m I k r s y t n 44 an ending a beginning a beginning to see an end a line that extends then collapses a lax breath he lacks it a tree by a track a rack & a scream a tension a lack of it a lick a lucky strike a struck lock an a that can't pretend 45 is this the end it is not the end we will say it is the end a g k or I m t z y v ww u u I k r p p d o k j r the sun is up the sky is blue look at the grey clouds i see them y y y y y y y 46 a b c d f g e i . . . . . J J J J J k I m k I m n o p a c o or n q v z w p t t y a b X U 47 green & red black among white a Iighter sky a darker hill a u or z narrow thin but long t p j I 48 a sand bar an old car a chocolate . a notse t p I m n 0 0 0 a road by a track a toad on a back 40 3 or 2 one e f bridge truck sky eye 49 final finale definite end end h w w t hope now awful hat here h e r e heir & ha1r or hare air we1r wierdly y & d j k k 9 t toronto - vancouver march 13 - 16 197 1 GLADY'S POEM up is down as down is up a cradle & a rug 1n a rain storm a g & an f an r of seeing you being with you m & P hot tumble heart pin just best can't chin show loving & knowing stum bl e speech is speech is speech a pumpkin & a tunnel a tornado march 22/ 71 12 :45 a.m . vancouver FORMLESS FACES blue gut turn 1 ed green scree crag face fold tum bl ecfown 2 the simplest things hold notl·ung holds the srmplest thmgs an empty wmcJow beh1nd a tree . . nngu1g 2 if you hold up your hand you hold up yoUI hand is that high enough? no there is no use to . a question mark my words 1 say words & words & words AN INTERLUDE IN WHICH SAINT RANGLEHOLD ADDRESSES ANYONE WHO'LL LISTEN 1 a light in a tree a hand 1n a crowd memory wh1stle now we will change directions th1s t1me for good what 1s the structure of heaven it is a circle w1thm a c1rcle ad nauseam 1f 1 am to stop & talk to you you must give me reason 1 am a busy man h z y k I r p t m u u 2 what 1s the meaning of mean1ng 1t 1s wh1stlmg when the thunder claps or p1ss1ng when it rams d1d you get the groce11es i tried but they we1e closed when i asked a man to cons1der theot y he said 1 will think on 1t when i have a spare moment 3 despair 1s an a1r you s1ng sorrow 1s to row your boat nowhere h is not t i is not m whatever was IS & wi ll be again POEM BEGINNING WITH LINES FROM A DREAM r n t r n t raggedy ann & andy n e u n e u winnie the pooh o k I e o k I e uncle wiggily . r s v p J nlpqrab s t d n s t u LOST ANGLES let us put this in focu s let us understand why anger is as sudden as as young dreams older fears the nearness of you likely as not nearly new mostly old cata!ogues I ists liable to caps1ze sudden holden & well yes collapse as as likely nearly not new something is old as nothing nearly yearly the millenium come round aga1n fourths of a moment airy pleasure gone to what ga1n to whit none known or un the wise threading send or then hover wh1ch is lover on the rind the pit of it alpha beta game as th e next one man 1 mean oh i wish these lines were longer longer the mu sic you can hea r familiar river • ALMANAC a I ive is not alive a corn is not hu ite wheat (how sweet ly done ly ding) sing that song was sung sang sun fort artery to heart to ordinary ford ing of the shall ow part & parcel & "i am all tied up" too busy to dream i was happy there he was happy sea's son i set sail or he is gone away gunned weight in heat the sun sea's unde r t h e sea interr relationships lock up the heart no knowing then that way no oh pen (clothes in disarray crumpled a phone call all phony fend off the end it is over so very over symphony allegories 0 0 --- - - - ~ • AS E TJ.IEY sr~PLY SJ:~ A t3 c ~Q.!' 0 YET?! ............ ,...... 0 F ~ G H 1 J <: ) -~ - 0 0 Oo c_ ___ --------~ ..... ,_ Alle:Jov/ 1t- 10 Uo., S+eve M~ C ..He.7) ~/ _..... '__5 ----· ~ .. ---' • • • • • • • •• • •• • • • • • . • • • NOTING NOT I-IING!.1 0 0 0 00 0 o.o\ ~ t1 0 0 ..,. 0 0 Oooo oo 0 < > Oo ~ . . ... . . . . . . ..... .• . ...• . . . .· .••. ~- . .. . .. .' • HE.LLO .... ..•• '· .. ' .. •• • -· •• , .. • •• • .- ... • • • • • • • •• • • • • ~ . .... • • •• ~ •• •• • • • • •• • • • •• • • • " •• • • • • •• I• • ' ... • .. •• • • -- •• • • \ • • " \ ......, • • •• • • • • • • ... \ •• • • • • • • • • • • • • • ' ' •• • •• • • • ... • • • • p • • c..1- ll REF LCIR SR fREFl I CIR J/ • • ., • • •