Poem: “Unholy Sonnet”
Today is fresh, and yesterday is stale.
Today is fast, and yesterday is slow.
Today is yes, and yesterday is no.
Today is news, and yesterday’s a tale.
The grave is empty. Last night it was full.
The glorious means of death was once a shame.
Someone is God who had a common name
That you might give a child or animal.
It happened overnight. The world is changed.
The bottles in the cellar all decant.
The stars sign the new cosmos at a slant.
And everybody’s plans are rearranged.
Today we meet our maker, in a flash
That turns the ash of yesterday to flesh.
“Unholy Sonnet” from Unholy Sonnets (Story Line Press, 2000). Copyright © by Mark Jarman. Reprinted by permission of the poet.