Stevie Smith Thought Poems
- 1. Conviction (iii)
The shadow was so black,
I thought it was a cat,
But once in to it
I knew it
... - 2. Deeply Morbid
Deeply morbid deeply morbid was the girl who typed the letters
Always out of office hours running with her social betters
But when daylight and the darkness of the office closed about her
Not for this ah not for this her office colleagues came to doubt her
... - 3. Not Waving But Drowning
Nobody heard him, the dead man,
But still he lay moaning:
I was much further out than you thought
And not waving but drowning.
... - 4. To The Tune Of The Coventry Carol
The nearly right
And yet not quite
In love is wholly evil
And every heart
... - 5. The Airy Christ
After reading Dr Rieuâ??s translation of St Markâ??s Gospel.
Who is this that comes in splendour, coming from the blazing East?
This is he we had not thought of, this is he the airy Christ.
... - 6. Nor We Of Her To Him
He said no word of her to us
Nor we of her to him,
But oh it saddened us to see
How wan he grew and thin.
... - 7. Sunt Leones
The lions who ate the Christians on the sands of the arena
By indulging native appetites played was now been seen a
Not entirely negligible part
In consolidating at the very start
... - 8. Mother, Among The Dustbins
Mother, among the dustbins and the manure
I feel the measure of my humanity, an allure
As of the presence of God, I am sure
... - 9. Do Not!
Do not despair of man, and do not scold him,
Who are you that you should so lightly hold him?
Are you not also a man, and in your heart
Are there not warlike thoughts and fear and smart?
...
