Jamie Malanowski

POETRY ALERT, PART II

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I had a very nice time Friday night at a fundraising dinner marking the 20th anniversary of the founding of the Hudson Valley Writers Center, a terrific organization that celebrates, teaches, and promotes writing. The event honored Ben Cheever (above, though murky)who is quite a good writer and a good friend of writers, and as worthy a recipient as I could think of. The event was held at the awesome Sleepy Hollow Country Club in a building which wa designed by Stanford White. It was my good fortune to share a table with Jerri Lynn Field of the Writers Center, Jeff Gordinier of Details and his charming wife (Jeff and I once worked for EW together), and some other good people. The entertainment was provided by Billy Collins, former poet laureate of the United States. I enjoyed the poems he read quite a bit, especially this one, called Adage.

Adage by Billy Collins

When it’s late at night and branches
are banging against the windows,
you might think that love is just a matter
.
of leaping out of the frying pan of yourself
into the fire of someone else,
but it’s a little more complicated than that.
.
It’s more like trading the two birds
who might be hiding in that bush
for the one you are not holding in your hand.
.
A wise man once said that love
was like forcing a horse to drink
but then everyone stopping thinking of him as wise.
.
Let us be clear about something.
Love is not as simple as getting up
on the wrong side of the bed wearing the emperor’s clothes.
.
No, it’s more like the way the pen
feels after it has defeated the sword.
It’s a little like the penny saved or the nine dropped
stitches.
.
You look at me through the halo of the last candle
and tell me love is an ill wind
that has no turning, a road that blows no good,
.
but I am here to remind you,
as our shadows tremble on the walls,
that love is the early bird who is better late than never.

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