William Saphier. Rain. Alfred Kreymborg, ed. 1920. Others for 1919

Alfred Kreymborg, ed. Others for 1919. 1920.

Rain

By William Saphier


LIKE crawling black monsters
the big clouds tap at my window,
their shooting liquid fingers slide
over the staring panes
and merge on the red wall.	5
Some of the fingers pull at the hinges
and whisper insistently: “Let us come in,
the cruel wind whips and drives us
till we are sore and in despair.”
But I cannot harbor the big crawling black clouds,	10
I cannot save them from the angry wind.
In a tiny crevice of my aching heart
there is a big storm brewing
and loud clamour and constant prayer
for the reflection of snow-capped mountains	15
on a distant lake.
Tired and dazed I sit on a bear skin
and timidly listen to the concert of storms.