"Gods in Exile"
Listen to James Longenbach reading this poem. One grew into a pear tree, Bearing fruit. Another, dissatisfied
With created things,
Withdrew: chameleon
Blending with the branch. Climbing
Their stairs, I saw complete
What they'd seen
Rising: a dome
An intelligence
Hovering above the streets
To cover us all.
Highways, strip malls.
Hercules lifting Antaeus
Pelvis to pelvis,
Earth to earth.
One became a sparrow,
Joined the flock.
When his singing aroused
Suspicion, he exchanged his voice
For a peacock's,
The solitary
Darkness of God.
One became a river.
One raised sheep.
Steve Jobs’ Dream Device Has Arrived, and It's Made by Microsoft
There Is Nothing Miraculous About a Tornado, Wolf Blitzer
A Huge Discovery About Prime Numbers—and What It Means for the Future of Math
James Longenbach's most recent collection of poems is The Iron Key. Graywolf will publish a new prose book, The Virtues of Poetry, next year.
Clickhere to visit Robert Pinsky's Favorite Poem Project site.To submit poetry to Slate, send up to five poems and a self-addressed, stamped envelope to: Robert Pinsky, Slate Magazine, Boston University, 236 Bay State Road, Boston, MA, 02215.