Not to Be Dwelled On<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Self-interest cropped up even there,
\nthe day I hoisted three, instead
\nof the ceremonially called-for two,
\nspadefuls\u00a0of loam on top
\nof the coffin of my friend.<\/p>\n
Why shovel more than anybody else?
\nWhy did I think I\u2019d prove? More love
\n(mud in her eye)? More will to work?
\n(Her father what, a shirker?) Christ,
\nwhat wouldn\u2019t anybody give
\nto get that gesture back?<\/p>\n
She cannot die again; and I
\ndo nothing but re-live.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Reprinted from\u00a0Upgraded to Serious <\/em><\/a>(Copper Canyon).<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Heather McHugh,<\/a>\u00a0recipient of a 2009 MacArthur\u00a0Fellowship,\u00a0is the author of thirteen books of poetry, translation, and literary essays, including Hinge & Sign: Poems, 1968 – 1993<\/a><\/em>\u00a0(Wesleyan) and The Father of the Predicaments<\/a><\/em> (Wesleyan). Her prize-winning translations include a Griffin International Poetry Prize and her volumes have been finalists for both the Pulitzer and the National Book Award. McHugh<\/a> has taught literature and writing for over three decades, most regularly at the University of Washington in Seattle and in the low residency MFA Program for Writers at Warren Wilson College. From 1999 to 2005 she served as Chancellor of the Academy of American Poets,<\/a> and in 2000 she was elected a fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. In 2012 she started a non-profit organization\u00a0called CAREGIFTED<\/a>.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n \u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Not to Be Dwelled On Self-interest cropped up even there, the day I hoisted three, instead of the ceremonially called-for two, spadefuls\u00a0of loam on top of the coffin of my friend. Why shovel more than anybody else? Why did … Continue reading