| Carl Sandburg (1878–1967). Smoke and Steel. 1922. |
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| IX. Haze |
| 6. Corn Hut Talk |
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| WRITE your wishes | |
| on the door | |
| and come in. | |
| |
| Stand outside | |
| in the pools of the harvest moon. | 5 |
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| Bring in | |
| the handshake of the pumpkins. | |
| |
| There’s a wish | |
| for every hazel nut? | |
| There’s a hope | 10 |
| for every corn shock? | |
| There’s a kiss | |
| for every clumsy climbing shadow? | |
| |
| Clover and the bumblebees once, | |
| high winds and November rain now. | 15 |
| |
| Buy shoes | |
| for rough weather in November. | |
| Buy shirts | |
| to sleep outdoors when May comes. | |
| |
| Buy me | 20 |
| something useless to remember you by. | |
| Send me | |
| a sumach leaf from an Illinois hill. | |
| |
| In the faces marching in the firelog flickers, | |
| In the fire music of wood singing to winter, | 25 |
| Make my face march through the purple and ashes. | |
| Make me one of the fire singers to winter. | |
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