O Anchor<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Dark charms the anchor in its house<\/p>\n
of water and what type of bottom
\nit drags, for what type of work, for you,<\/p>\n
with your need to stay in roughly the same place<\/p>\n
for a night, with your questions of how
\nmuch to let out<\/p>\n
and how well your windlass works<\/p>\n
and how you feel sometimes hauling
\n200 foot of chain by hand in the dark,<\/p>\n
wondering what in your life sent you<\/p>\n
here, where the world exists as much
\nbelow you as above; where you are<\/p>\n
as much the chain as the chain.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
“O Anchor” first appeared in Beloit Poetry Journal <\/em>and was reprinted in Best New Poets 2012.<\/em><\/p>\n Matthew Nienow’s<\/a> most recent chapbook is Th<\/em>e End of the Folded Map <\/em><\/a>(Codhill Press, 2011). His\u00a0work has appeared or is forthcoming in Narrative<\/em>, New England Review<\/em>,<\/a> Poetry<\/em>, and many other magazines and anthologies. He has received fellowships, grants, and awards from the National Endowment for the Arts,<\/a> the Bread Loaf Writers\u2019 Conference, the Elizabeth George Foundation, Artist Trust, and 4Culture.\u00a0 He\u00a0lives in Port Townsend with his wife and two sons, where he works on boats and other things made of wood.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" O Anchor Dark charms the anchor in its house of water and what type of bottom it drags, for what type of work, for you, with your need to stay in roughly the same place for a night, with … Continue reading