Gary Barwin's Blog: serif of nottingblog, page 25

My daughter tells me they have that new book smell!

Jewishness as a specific response to the condition of being Jewish: Charles Bernstein and all the blackbirds in heaven

"I am interested in Jewishness as a specific response to the condition of being Jewish (the circular reasoning is liberating)—and as an argument with that condition."

This from "Jellyfish with a Jew's Ear," a great little review/discussion of Charles Bernstein and his latest book of essays, Pitch of Poetry at Tablet magazine.

They discuss Bernstein's frankly very moving poem,"All the Whiskey in Heaven" (the title poem of his selected) and link to a video of him reading it.




As part of an ongoing project of exploring the repopulation of poems with a variety of species, I wrote this version some years ago (it was published in Arc Poetry magazine) and will appear next year in my poetry book No TV for Woodpeckers from Wolsak and Wynn next year--unless of course my editor, Paul Vermeersch cuts it. Don't cut it, Paul! I like it!):

Not

for all the blackbirds
for all the blackbirds
for a million blackbirds

for the blackbirds’ wings
for the blackbirds’ eyes
for a sky of blackbirds

if you paid me feather
if you paid me wing
if you gave me flight
if you gave me nest

for all the blackbirds
for all the blackbirds
for the mind of blackbirds
for the whole heart of blackbirds

Stumbling Before the Law

A gatekeeper sits before the gate. As always, it stands open. A traveller asks to be let in.         “No,” the gatekeeper says.  “Later?”  “Maybe,” the gatekeeper says. “But understand that though I am powerful, I am only the most lowly gatekeeper. Before each of the many gates, one after the other, there are other gatekeepers, each more powerful than the other. For instance, I can’t manage even one look at the third.” 
“I understand,” the traveller says. “But you look hungry. Have some soup.” The traveller takes a bowl and spoon from his greatcoat and offers some to the gatekeeper. As he does, he trips, and trying to not to spill the soup, stumbles through the gate. He staggers past the first gatekeeper and, still balancing the soup, staggers past the second gatekeeper and the second gate, and as he stumbles through the third gate, he spills soup on the third gatekeeper, so terrible to behold.
“Sorry, sorry,” he says as continues to stumble, now past the fourth gatekeeper, more terrible still, and the fourth gate. 
The traveller continues to stagger. He continues to stumble past both gates and gatekeepers, spilling soup on many. He may be stumbling still. It is a mystery not easily explained and he has left the bowl and spoon on the outside.