Night Crossing by Ron Slate

View this email on a browser Forward to a friend August 23, 2016   Night Crossing   Ron Slate

Back and forth is a way to move when the visible is spacious.   But what’s the state of the last boat, lightly loaded and unprofitable?   Tied up at the mainland dock, the ferry shudders in its berth,   its captain consults a tide chart and grunts. A new, possessive moon.   Late departure, a rigid beam of light probes the sea lane for what violates or drifts.   The other shore, not far off, can leap and hurt the hand pointing at it.   In the dark alongside—wings seen, instantly gone, a half-thought interrupted by a heave.   Then the ferry turns hard a-port to the channel, the parting waters make the sound of a god   murmuring for both the first and last time. At mid-crossing, something is lacking twice over—   in this location, in the mechanism or vision of the crossing? Two ports, both accommodating, but unmoved   by what goes on between. How many departures does a person need, how many starts can be tolerated?   A necessary collision at the pilings tells everyone it’s over.            Copyright © 2016 Ron Slate. Used with permission of the author. About This Poem   “At the outset, there was a vague thought—we dream of moving forward but actually we just go back and forth. The mystery of time makes me a little seasick. But a half-thought can sometimes displace more water than a dissertation. Bon voyage!” —Ron Slate   Ron Slate is the author of The Great Wave (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2009). He lives in Milton, Massachusetts.     Poetry by Slate   The Great Wave (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2009) "From the Peninsula" by Ishion Hutchinson "Font" by Linda Gregerson "My Mother Would Be a Falconress" by Robert Duncan Poem-a-Day   Launched during National Poetry Month in 2006, Poem-a-Day features new and previously unpublished poems by contemporary poets on weekdays and classic poems on weekends. Thanks for being a part of the Academy of American Poets community. To learn about other programs, including National Poetry Month, Poem in Your Pocket Day, the annual Poets Forum, and more, visit Poets.org.   You are receiving this e-mail because you elected to subscribe to our mailing list. If you would like to unsubscribe, please click here.   © Academy of American Poets 75 Maiden Lane, Suite 901, New York, NY 10038