Unholy Sonnet 1

By Mark Jarman b. 1952 Mark Jarman

Dear God, Our Heavenly Father, Gracious Lord,

Mother Love and Maker, Light Divine,

Atomic Fingertip, Cosmic Design,

First Letter of the Alphabet, Last Word,

Mutual Satisfaction, Cash Award,

Auditor Who Approves Our Bottom Line,

Examiner Who Says That We Are Fine,

Oasis That All Sands Are Running Toward.

I can say almost anything about you,

O Big Idea, and with each epithet,

Create new reasons to believe or doubt you,

Black Hole, White Hole, Presidential Jet.

But what’s the anything I must leave out? You

Solve nothing but the problems that I set.

Source: Unholy Sonnets (Story Line Press, 2003)

Biography

Considered a key figure in both New Narrative and New Formalism, Mark Jarman has exerted a significant influence on contemporary American poetry. In the 1980s, with Robert McDowell, Jarman founded and edited the Reaper, a magazine devoted to reclaiming and promoting poetry that emphasized story and image. Controversially warning "Navel gazers and mannerists” that “their time is running out,” the magazine sought to reestablish . . .

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