Poetry Explorer- Classic Contemporary Poetry, THE NAME, by ROBERT CREELEY


Poetry Explorer

Classic and Contemporary Poetry

THE NAME, by         Recitation by Author         Poet Analysis     Poet's Biography
First Line: Be natural
Subject(s): Fathers & Daughters; Parents; Women; Parenthood


Be natural, wise
as you can be,
my daughter,
Let my name
be in you flesh
I gave you
in the act of
loving your mother,
all your days,
her ways,
the woman in you
brought for
sensuality's measure,
no other,
there was no thought
of it but such
pleasure all women
must be in her,
as you. But not wiser,
not more of nature
than her hair,
the eyes
she gives you.
There will not be another
woman such as you
are. Remember
your mother,
the way you came,
the days of waiting.
Be natural,
daughter, wise
as you can be,
all my daughters,
be women
for men
when that time comes.
Let the rhetoric
stay with me
your father. Let
me talk about it,
saving you such
vicious self-
exposure, let you
pass it on
in you. I cannot
be more than the man
who watches.





Discover our Poem Explanations and Poet Analyses!


Other Poems of Interest...
Home: PoetryExplorer.net