Poetry International Poetry International
Poem

Alice Notley

My Sea

My Sea

My Sea

What I lose you let me, accusation
always gets one in. But I want to talk like the dead
remember that town where we went or
how do I know when I’m just a soul – not
       when I’m leading?
A soul can lead, fight and kill; in the sketchy rain
there, but you can’t kill where we’re dead. That’s
the best thing – no one has any power.
How can I lead you without power? We want to find
out . . . Drop everything? – there’s no gravity.
Are you grave? There’s no bravery.
      I’m going to lead you
into a you you don’t know . . . Most people want
to go. There we risked being wrong but
that was a linguistic quality, or you
could have brought us to hell. Outside
of gravity, instead, is the house. It wasn’t
built with raisins. The light there, but
what’s it for? For eyes. He called me “Four Eyes”
now I have billions. It’s a house on the coast
Is it the House of Answers? I will continue
to reason for you, living on no particular income
deep in my soul. The house has a basement I
       didn’t know about
connecting to My Sea, Mare Meum. The answers
break with foam and wild pearls. The wind
is me too – you know who you are – where’s
the desert? The sea came back to this land,
to the abandoned its lover. The kind of sea
you can’t drown in. You can want to coincide with me
for I am the soul your leader the clear rock of kind mind,
senseless. Senseless free will – the only thing here.
Close

My Sea

What I lose you let me, accusation
always gets one in. But I want to talk like the dead
remember that town where we went or
how do I know when I’m just a soul – not
       when I’m leading?
A soul can lead, fight and kill; in the sketchy rain
there, but you can’t kill where we’re dead. That’s
the best thing – no one has any power.
How can I lead you without power? We want to find
out . . . Drop everything? – there’s no gravity.
Are you grave? There’s no bravery.
      I’m going to lead you
into a you you don’t know . . . Most people want
to go. There we risked being wrong but
that was a linguistic quality, or you
could have brought us to hell. Outside
of gravity, instead, is the house. It wasn’t
built with raisins. The light there, but
what’s it for? For eyes. He called me “Four Eyes”
now I have billions. It’s a house on the coast
Is it the House of Answers? I will continue
to reason for you, living on no particular income
deep in my soul. The house has a basement I
       didn’t know about
connecting to My Sea, Mare Meum. The answers
break with foam and wild pearls. The wind
is me too – you know who you are – where’s
the desert? The sea came back to this land,
to the abandoned its lover. The kind of sea
you can’t drown in. You can want to coincide with me
for I am the soul your leader the clear rock of kind mind,
senseless. Senseless free will – the only thing here.

My Sea

Sponsors
Gemeente Rotterdam
Nederlands Letterenfonds
Stichting Van Beuningen Peterich-fonds
Prins Bernhard cultuurfonds
Lira fonds
Versopolis
J.E. Jurriaanse
Gefinancierd door de Europese Unie
Elise Mathilde Fonds
Stichting Verzameling van Wijngaarden-Boot
Veerhuis
VDM
Partners
LantarenVenster – Verhalenhuis Belvédère