Kenneth Patchen

thumb|You, the woman; I, the man; this, the world: And each is the work of all. Kenneth Patchen (13 December 1911 – 8 January 1972) was an American poet and painter. Quotes thumb|You, the sought for; I, the seeker; this, the search: And each is the mission of all. For greatness is only the drayhorse that coaxes The built cart out; and where we go is reason. You, the woman; I, the man; this, the world: And each is the work of all. "The Character of Love Seen as a Search for the Lost" You, the sought for; I, the seeker; this, the search: And each is the mission of all. For greatness is only the drayhorse that coaxes The built cart out; and where we go is reason. But genius is an enormous littleness, a trickling Of heart that covers alike the hare and the hunter. "The Character of Love Seen as a Search for the Lost" You, the village; I, the stranger; this, the road: And each is the work of all. Then, not that man do more, or stop pity; but that he be Wider in living; that all his cities fly a clean flag... We have been alone too long, love; it is terribly late For the pierced feet on the water and we must not die now. "The Character of Love Seen as a Search for the Lost" Have you wondered why all the windows in heaven werebroken?Have you seen the homeless in the grave of God'shand?Do you want to acquaint the larks with the fatuousmusic of war? "The Character of Love Seen as a Search for the Lost" O my love my dear ladyThe world is not very bigThere is only room for our wonderAnd the light leaning winds of heavenAre not more sweet or pureThan your mouth on my throatO my love there are larks in our morningAnd the finding flame of your handsAnd the moss on the bank of the riverAnd the butterfliesAnd the whirling-madButterflies! "'O My Love the Pretty Towns'" As we are so wonderfully done with each otherWe can walk into our separate sleepon floors of music where the milkwhite cloak of childhoodlies "As We Are So Wonderfully Done With Each Other" Your lips have splashed my dull house with print of flowersMy hands are crooked where they spilled over your dearcurving "As We Are So Wonderfully Done With Each Other" To leave the earth was my wish, and no will stayed my rising.Early, before sun had filled the roads with cartsConveying folk to weddings and to murders;Before men left their selves of sleep, to wanderIn the dark of the world like whipped beasts. "The Temple" The animal I wantedCouldn't get into the world...I can hear it cryingWhen I sit like this away from life. "'The Animal I Wanted'" External links The Kenneth Patchen Home Page Obituary of Miriam Patchen by Marcus Williamson in The Independent (UK) The Orange Bears, a poem that references his childhood in Youngstown, OH Tracing the Places of Kenneth Patchen "Portrait of a Rebel Poet" by Larry Smith at smithdocs.net Selected Poems & Paintings by Patchen, with Photographs and Biography "Kenneth Patchen, A Tribute Page" at recollectionbooks.com "Kenneth Patchen centennial: poetry that still resonates" by J. H. Miller, 12.12.11, at sfbg.com - An appreciation of Patchen's work with audio clips of him reading his work. Patchen Books - Kenneth Patchen Book Page at Bottom Dog Press and Artichoke Press Category:Poets from the United States Category:1972 deaths Category:People from Ohio Category:Painters from the United States