Joseph Stroud has written several books of poetry, including In the Sleep of Rivers, Signatures, Below Cold Mountain, and Country of Light. His work has appeared in numerous anthologies and was featured on National Public Radio’s Writer’s Almanac. Among his honors is the Witter Bynner Fellowship of the Library of Congress, as well as a Pushcart Prize. Stroud makes his home on the California coast and in a cabin in the Sierra Nevada.

Three Poems

by Joseph Stroud


Praxis

THE KOKINSHŪ says poetry should move earth

and heaven, stir the feelings of the unseen gods,
soften the relations between man and woman,
and soothe the heart of the fierce warrior. Well,
of course! But poets know the really tricky part
is getting from one line to the next after they start.


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