autres et pareilles
avec chacune c’est autre et c’est pareil
avec chacune l’absence d’amour est autre
avec chacune l’absence d’amour est pareille
Samuel Beckett
The "Advent" poems were written for the most part in November & December of 1986, & to some extent in early 1987. The series was originally conceived as 24 poems taking a reader through the Advent season, a sort of poetic Advent calendar. I’ve posted all 17 poems that were completed. The order is more or less the same as I envisioned it at the time they were composed, but I may not have recalled it perfectly.
Looking back over 20 years, these poems now strike me—at least the best of them—as the best work I did in Charlottesville. They were overall a happy combination of a structure that interested me, & a verse form with which I was comfortable all falling into place by accident (?) with some episodes, encounters, etc. in my life that inspired me.
Several of these poems were published (under the name Jack Hayes) in Timbuktu back in the 80’s—thanks again!
A couple of these poems were revised in some small but significant ways during the posting process; they recall a particular moment in my life quite vividly—as such, they are dear to me & I couldn’t help but want them to “look their best” as they made their re-appearance.