In Cities, Be Alert

By Annie Finch b. 1956 Annie Finch

You may hear that your heartbeat is uneven

and let new tension climb around your shoulders,

thinking you've found the trick for going mad.

But try to keep a grip on where you are.

Remember: all around you is pure city;

try to stay alert. On the wide streets,

so empty late at night, streaking in glass,

the color of an alley, or the fall

of a sideways flicker from a neon sign

may utterly and briefly disconcert you—

but as you go, you'll find that noise is worse.

Prepare for noise. But never scream. Even tensing

ears too far in advance can sharpen sirens,

and as for horns. ... When you're back to

your normal rhythm after such encounters,

just try to stay alert. You'll never know

exactly who is coming up behind you,

but the sudden movement of pedestrians

will finally, of course, be what disarms you.

Reprinted with permission of the author and Story Line Press.

Source: Eve (Story Line Press, 1997)

Biography

Annie Finch is the author or editor of fifteen books of poetry, translation, and criticism, including the trilogy of poetry collections Eve (1997), Calendars (2003), and Spells, and the long poems The Encyclopedia of Scotland (2002) and Among the Goddesses: An Epic Libretto in Seven Dreams (2009). Calendars was shortlisted for the Foreword Poetry Book of the Year Award, and Eve reissued in the Carnegie Mellon Classic . . .

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