The Collected Poems of Lucille Clifton 1965-2010

Copyright ©2012 by The Estate of Lucille T. Clifton. Foreword copyright ©2012 by Toni Morrison. Afterword won’t you celebrate with me? © by Kevin Young.

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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Clifton, Lucille, 1936–2010.

 The collected poems of Lucille Clifton 1965–2010 / edited by Kevin Young and Michael S. Glaser ; foreword by Toni Morrison ; afterword by Kevin Young. — 1st ed.

      p. cm. — (American poets continuum series ; 134)

 ISBN 978-1-934414-90-3 (hardcover : alk. paper)

 I. Young, Kevin. II. Glaser, Michael S., 1943– III. Title.

 PS3553.L45 2012

 811'.54—dc23

Contents

Title Page

Copyright

Editors’ Note

Foreword: Lucille Clifton by Toni Morrison

Early Uncollected Poems (1965–1969)

BLACK WOMEN

OLD HUNDRED

THE OLD AVAILABLES HAVE

CHAN’S DREAM

from Dark Nursery Rhymes for a Dark Daughter

5/23/67 R.I.P.

ONLY TOO HIGH IS HIGH ENOUGH

THE COMING OF X

Conversation Overheard in a Graveyard

SUNDAY DINNER

MY FRIEND MARY STONE FROM OXFORD MISSISSIPPI

SPRING THOUGHT FOR THELMA

my mother teached me

To Mama too late

Dear Mama

Dear

Dear

plain as a baby

Everytime i talk about

satchmo

FOR PRISSLY

the last Seminole is black

a poem written for many moynihans

the poet is thirty two

QUOTATIONS FROM AUNT MARGARET BROWN

daddy

take somebody like me

let them say

good times (1969)

in the inner city

my mama moved among the days

my daddy’s fingers move among the couplers

lane is the pretty one

miss rosie

robert

the 1st

running across to the lot

still

good times

if i stand in my window

stops

the discoveries of fire

those boys that ran together

pity this poor animal

the white boy

the meeting after the savior gone

for deLawd

ca’line’s prayer

if he ask you was i laughing

if something should happen

generations

love rejected

tyrone (1)

willie b (1)

tyrone (2)

willie b (2)

tyrone (3)

willie b (3)

tyrone (4)

willie b (4)

buffalo war

flowers

pork chops

now my first wife never did come out of her room

the way it was

admonitions

good news about the earth (1972)

about the earth

after kent state

being property once myself

the way it was

the lost baby poem

later i’ll say

apology

lately

the ’70s

listen children

driving through new england

the news

the bodies broken on

song

prayer

heroes

africa

i am high on the man called crazy

earth

for the bird who flew against our window one morning and broke his natural neck

God send easter

so close

wise: having the ability to perceive and adopt the best means for accomplishing an end.

malcolm

eldridge

to bobby seale

for her hiding place

richard penniman

daddy

poem for my sisters

the kind of man he is

some jesus

adam and eve

cain

moses

solomon

job

daniel

jonah

john

mary

joseph

the calling of the disciples

the raising of lazarus

palm sunday

good friday

easter sunday

spring song

Uncollected Poems (1973–1974)

Phillis Wheatley Poetry Festival

All of Us Are All of Us

an ordinary woman (1974)

sisters

in salem

sisters

leanna’s poem

on the birth of bomani

salt

a storm poem

god’s mood

new bones

harriet

roots

come home from the movies

to ms. ann

my boys

last note to my girls

a visit to gettysburg

monticello

to a dark moses

Kali

this morning

i agree with the leaves

the lesson of the falling leaves

i am running into a new year

the coming of Kali

she insists on me

she understands me

she is dreaming

her love poem

calming Kali

i am not done yet

the poet

turning

my poem

lucy one-eye

if mama

i was born in a hotel

light

cutting greens

jackie robinson

i went to the valley

at last we killed the roaches

in the evenings

breaklight

some dreams hang in the air

the carver

let there be new flowering

the thirty eighth year

Uncollected Poems (ca. 1975)

Anniversary 5/10/74

November 1, 1975

We Do Not Know Very Much About Lucille’s Inner Life

two-headed woman (1980)

homage to mine

lucy and her girls

i was born with twelve fingers

homage to my hair

homage to my hips

what the mirror said

there is a girl inside

to merle

august the 12th

on the death of allen’s son

speaking of loss

to thelma who worried because i couldn’t cook

poem on my fortieth birthday to my mother who died young

februrary 13, 1980

forgiving my father

to the unborn and waiting children

aunt agnes hatcher tells

the once and future dead

two-headed woman

in this garden

the making of poems

new year

sonora desert poem

my friends

wife

i once knew a man

angels

conversation with my grandson, waiting to be conceived

the mystery that surely is present

the astrologer predicts at mary’s birth

anna speaks of the childhood of mary her daughter

mary’s dream

how he is coming then

holy night

a song of mary

island mary

mary     mary astonished by God

for the blind

for the mad

for the lame

for the mute

God waits for the wandering world

the light that came to lucille clifton

the light that came to lucille clifton

testament

incandescence

mother, i am mad

perhaps

explanations

friends come

to joan

confession

in populated air

Next (1987)

we are all next

album

winnie song

there

what spells raccoon to me

this belief

why some people be mad at me sometimes

sorrow song

I. at creation

I. at gettysburg

I. at nagasaki

I. at jonestown

atlantic is a sea of bones

cruelty. don’t talk to me about cruelty

the woman in the camp

the lost women

4 daughters

grown daughter

here is another bone to pick with you

female

if our grandchild be a girl

this is the tale

my dream about being white

my dream about the cows

my dream about time

my dream about falling

my dream about the second coming

my dream about God

my dream about the poet

morning mirror

or next

the death of crazy horse

crazy horse names his daughter

crazy horse instructs the young men but in their grief they forget

the message of crazy horse

the death of thelma sayles

lives

the message of thelma sayles

the death of joanne c.

enter my mother

leukemia as white rabbit

incantation

chemotherapy

she won’t ever forgive me

the one in the next bed is dying

leukemia as dream/ritual

the message of jo

chorus: lucille

the death of fred clifton

i’m going back to my true identity

my wife

the message of fred clifton

singing

in white america

1 i come to read them poems

2 the history

3 the tour

4 the hall

5 the reading

6 it is late

shapeshifter poems

1 the legend is whispered

2 who is there to protect her

3 if the little girl lies

4 the poem at the end of the world

california lessons

1 geography

2 history

3 botany

4 semantics

5 metaphysics

quilting (1991)

[section titles are taken from the names of traditional quilt designs]

quilting

log cabin

i am accused of tending to the past

note to myself

poem beginning in no and ending in yes

february 11, 1990

at the cemetery, walnut grove plantation, south carolina, 1989

slave cabin, sotterly plantation, maryland, 1989

white lady

memo

reply

whose side are you on?

shooting star

poem with rhyme in it

eyes

defending my tongue

catalpa flower

from the wisdom of sister brown

the birth of language

we are running

what the grass knew

nude photograph

this is for the mice that live

sleeping beauty

a woman who loves

man and wife

poem in praise of menstruation

peeping tom

ways you are not like oedipus

the killing of the trees

questions and answers

november 21, 1988

the beginning of the end of the world

the last day

eight-pointed star

wild blessings

somewhere

when i stand around among poets

water sign woman

photograph

grandma, we are poets

december 7, 1989

to my friend, jerina

lot’s wife     1988

fat fat water rat

poem to my uterus

to my last period

wishes for sons

the mother’s story

in which i consider the fortunate deaf

4/25/89     late

as he was dying

night sound

the spirit walks in

after the reading

moonchild

tree of life

oh where have you fallen to

remembering the birth of lucifer

whispered to lucifer

eve’s version

lucifer understanding at last

the garden of delight

adam thinking

eve thinking

the story thus far

lucifer speaks in his own voice

prayer

blessing the boats

The Book of Light (1992)

LIGHT

reflection

climbing

june 20

daughters

sam

my lost father

thel

imagining bear

c.c. rider

11/10 again

she lived

for roddy

them and us

the women you are accustomed to

song at midnight

won’t you celebrate with me

lightning bolt

it was a dream

each morning i pull myself

here yet be dragons

the yeti poet returns to his village to tell his story

crabbing

the earth is a living thing

move

samson predicts from gaza the philadelphia fire

january 1991

dear jesse helms,

if i should

further note to clark

begin here

night vision

fury

cigarettes

final note to clark

note, passed to superman

the rough weight of it

splendor

seeker of visions

nothing about the moment

atlas

sarah’s promise

naomi watches as ruth sleeps

cain

leda 1

leda 2

leda 3

far memory

brothers

Uncollected Poems (1993)

hometown 1993

ones like us

The Terrible Stories (1996)

telling our stories

1. A Dream of Foxes

fox

the coming of fox

dear fox

leaving fox

one year later

a dream of foxes

2. From the Cadaver

amazons

lumpectomy eve

consulting the book of changes: radiation

1994

scar

hag riding

down the tram

rust

from the cadaver

3. A Term in Memphis

shadows

slaveships

entering the south

the mississippi river empties into the gulf

old man river

the son of medgar

auction street

memphis

what comes after this

blake

4. In the Meantime

evening and my dead once husband

memory

my sanctified grandmother

lee

album

what did she know, when did she know it

in the same week

heaven

lorena

in the meantime

5. From the Book of David

dancer

son of jesse

david has slain his ten thousands

to michal

enemies

beloved

bathsheba

the prophet

oh absalom my son my son

david, musing

what manner of man

Blessing the Boats (2000)

new poems

the times

signs

moonchild

dialysis

donor

libation

the photograph: a lynching

jasper    texas    1998

alabama 9/15/63

what i think when i ride the train

praise song

august

study the masters

lazarus (first day)

lazarus (second day)

lazarus (third day)

birthday 1999

grief

report from the angel of eden

Mercy (2004)

last words

the gift

out of body

dying

last words

oh antic God

april

after one year

sonku

children

stories

surely i am able to write poems

mulberry fields

the river between us

cancer

in the mirror

blood

a story

mercy

here rests

after oz

the Phantom

Powell

walking the blind dog

hands

wind on the st. marys river

the tale the shepherds tell the sheep

stop

september song a poem in 7 days

1     tuesday 9/11/01

2     wednesday 9/12/01

3     thursday 9/13/01

4     friday 9/14/01

5     saturday 9/15/01

6     sunday morning 9/16/01

7     monday sundown 9/17/01

the message from The Ones (received in the late 70s)

beginning of message

your mother sends you this

come to here

you

we are ones

in the saying of

we are here