A Remarkable New Book of Poetry from PETER WELTNER
A Last Song after “Ronsard à son âme”
Cherished, estranged, struggling soul,
dear ignored sweet soul, what a toll
the body imposes on you. What made
it let you go at last? A final raid
on the articulate awaits you. It’s a lonely
place you descend to on your own,
familiar to you in its cold simplicity,
without regret or fear, though far from home.
What good is pride, bitterness, rage, envy,
or the body’s fragile beauty where all’s unknown?
Passersby, remember us, our poems,
lost to a world grown dark and deep.
Pray for us. Pursue charity.
Sing with us freely, then let us sleep.
Peter Weltner, from Old Songs Replayed