MERVYN PEAKE
1911 – 1968
FAME IS MY TAWDRY GOAL
Fame is my tawdry goal, and I despise
My heart for harbouring that crimson yearning —
For well I know that it will bring no burning
Beauty before the windows of my eyes
For I, unknown, am spun with mysteries
And all the firmament of stars, my awning —
And yet I have a love for parrot cries
And cry o' nights for fame, that spangled thing
And only on grey evening of clear thought
I know that there is nothing sold or bought
That alters with the selling or the buying —
Yet now when I am painting, or am trying
To launch a frigate line of cargo'd thought
The foul red lips of Fame begin to sing.
c 1939
Published in
Collected Poems
2008
THE TROUBLE WITH GERANIUMS
The trouble with geraniums
Is that they're much too red!
The trouble with my toast is that
It's far too full of bread.
The trouble with a diamond
is that it's much too bright.
The same applies to fish and stars
and the electric light.
The trouble with the stars I see
lies in the way they fly.
The trouble with myself is all
self-centred in the eye.
The trouble with my looking-glass
is that it shows me, me:
there's trouble in all sorts of things
where it should never be.
c 1939
Published in
A Book of Nonsense
1972
Use the link below to read about the life and work of British artist, novelist, poet and playwright MERVYN PEAKE:
You might also enjoy:
Poet of the Month 088: OSIP MANDELSTAM
Poet of the Month 078: MARY WROTH
Poet of the Month 069: ROSEMARY TONKS
No comments:
Post a Comment