In 2019 I watched an interview with Lawrence Ferlinghetti. At one point in the conversation he was hanging something up on a wall, pounding a nail, laughing, he looked over his shoulder at the camera. There was a spark. I wrote this poem, which I later published to honor his centennial birthday. Today we hear of his death @101.
(photos via The Guardian, with a tip o' the hat to my Uncle Petey too).
Take This Hammer
(in honor of Lawrence Ferlinghetti's hundredth birthday)
Watch an old man
pound a nail into
the wall and know
that once he could
set a nail, that
same small thing,
with one or two
swings of a strong
arm. Watch an
old man hit the
nail on the head
over and over
striking on center,
sure that in time
it will set in the
sweet spot. Watch
an old man turn
from the nail and
sigh with knowing
the nail will hold
longer than his grip
on the hammer will.
Watch an old man
set a nail and
laugh, reaching
for another nail.
This poem was included in the book