ROUND
after John Clare
Round The Nest A Welcome Guest
No Memry Left Old Feelings Gloaming Strange
With Jobbling Fingers Lurch To Fill A Hat
And Hopeless Hope Hopes On And Meets No End
My Manhood But A Memory Left
A Cunning Guest Goes Bye Unnoticed Still
The Place We Occupy Seems All The World
And Neighbour Tennant Spell Struck Listens Close
Ive Hunted White Necks High On Mornings Noise
Swee Swee A Buzzing Loud And Long And Loud
To Peep At Five Ink-Spotted Greeny Shells
A Hollow Startling Prison Dwelling Noise
And Sluthering Down The Knotty Trunk Amazd
Fades But Memry Left A Prison Still
A Hissing Noise Assails A Crimpled Guest
Remember Still And Still Endure Again
Ive Nestled Down In Prisons Still And Strange
Revise Old Feelings Weeding Memry Lost
And Neighbour Meets With Neighbour Unawares
A Great White Guest Goes Deafening Bye
Peal On Peal Revising Feelings Still
And Strangers Heels Tramp Speckled Places Past
As Gusts Again Enraptured Wrap The Nest
Ingulphed Ive Nestled Deep In Evenings Down
A Stranger Guest Ive Clumb With Hook And Pole
But Still And Still Endure Old Feelings Pains
To Old Ones Cries And Crimpled Quaking Breast
A Strange Formed Accident And Stranger Guest
Claire Marie Stancek is a PhD candidate in the English Department at UC Berkeley, where she teaches classes on nineteenth century literature and creative writing. Poems from her manuscript, "MOUTHS," are forthcoming in Oversound, Berkeley Poetry Review, Animal, Typo, and elsewhere.