E-Verse Radio
  • About
    • Disclaimer
    • Videos
    • Subscribe
  • Ernest Hilbert’s Books

“Poem Begun on the Autumn Equinox” by Ernest Hilbert

By Ernest Hilbert • September 22, 2016 • Feature, Poetry

The graveyard is as orderly and clean
As the playing fields and ballpark nearby.
I park the jeep midway between the two.
I wonder what this short distance can mean.
Partly gone from all that appears early,
At thirty-five I’m at least half way through.
One wine-red leaf sinks through the humid air.
At its end, summer still feels like itself.
Seasons start slowly. They end that way too:
One more check, one more payment, one less hair.
One may still add grains of learning and wealth,
But the mornings that remain seem too few.
There’s nothing to hear on the radio.
The river is low, foams white, and runs slow.

Original appearance in American Poetry Review, July 2008, Volume 37, No. 04.

“The American lyric rendered in these poems follows Coleridge’s description of the sonnet as ‘adapted to the state of a man violently agitated by a real passion.’ Hilbert’s passion here is to contain, precious piece by precious piece, the unordinary quotidian of the American poetic. Sixty Sonnets is a gift to all of us from an exceptional ear and a fine consciousness.”

– Afaa Michael Weaver

Print Friendly, PDF & Email

Comments

comments

autumnequinoxernesternest hilbertfallhilbertpoempoemspoetpoetryseptemerSixty Sonnetssonnet
Tweet
1
"Warning" by A.M. Juster

1 Comment

  • slakeca41@yahoo.com'
    Reply Eric Howard August 17, 2010 at 7:32 pm

    A great sonnet! Reminds me of Skunk Hour, I guess because of the speaker sitting in a car.

Leave a Reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

"A Clock in the Square" by Adrienne Rich

About the Author

ernest@everseradio.com'

Ernest Hilbert

Ernest Hilbert is founder of E-Verse Radio.

Search E-Verse

Subscribe to E-Verse

Get new posts by email:

Follow Along

Videos

Audio

Facebook Twitter Soundcloud Youtube RSS

Made with in Philly

© 2018 E-Verse Radio All rights reserved.