Our Lady Peace Poem by Mark Van Doren

Our Lady Peace

Rating: 3.1


How far is it to peace, the piper sighed,
The solitary, sweating as he paused.
Asphalt the noon; the ravens, terrified,
Fled carrion thunder that percussion caused.

The envelope of earth was powder loud;
The taut wings shivered, driven at the sun.
The piper put his pipe away and bowed.
Not here, he said. I hunt the love-cool one,

The dancer with the clipped hair. Where is she?
We shook our heads, parting for him to pass.
Our lady was of no such trim degree,
And none of us had seen her face, alas.

She was the very ridges that we must scale,
Securing the rough top. And how she smiled
Was how our strength would issue. Not to fail
Was having her, gigantic, undefiled,

For homely goddess, big as the world that burned,
Grandmother and taskmistress, frild and town.
We let the stranger go; but when we turned
Our lady lived, fierce in each other's frown.

COMMENTS OF THE POEM
Gavin Hitchins Mr. 23 December 2023

Thanks for sharing

0 0 Reply
Susan Williams 13 January 2016

Beauty and ugly reality side by side in this piece- - How far is it to peace, the piper sighed, The solitary, sweating as he paused. Asphalt the noon; the ravens, terrified, Fled carrion thunder that percussion caused.

25 0 Reply
M Asim Nehal 13 January 2016

The dancer with the clipped hair. Where is she? We shook our heads, parting for him to pass.

1 0 Reply
Molly Rai 24 May 2007

yay for Our Lady Peace so this is the poem they're named after <3

15 1 Reply
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