Poetry Explorer


Classic and Contemporary Poetry


SOUND by JAMES HARRISON

Poet Analysis

First Line: AT DAWN I SQUAT ON THE GARAGE
Last Line: AS THEY BURST FROM THE TREES.
Subject(s): BIRDS; LABOR & LABORERS; MORNING; WORK; WORKERS;

At dawn I squat on the garage
with snuff under a lip
to sweeten the roofing nails --
my shoes and pant cuffs
are wet with dew.
In the orchard the peach trees
sway with the loud
weight of birds, green fruit, yellow haze.
And my hammer -- the cold head taps,
then swings its first full arc;
the sound echoes against the barn,
muffled in the loft,
and out the other side, then lost
in the noise of the birds
as they burst from the trees.



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