“But to go on from here
When it has all come back, bread
On the waters, for life is
This emptying and filling the

Rivers big at their head
Swollen as big as at the mouth,
Shall we begin earlier next time,
Push the seeds to the surface?”

Faster Than Birds Can Fly
John Ashbery (1927-2017)
New York City: Granary Books, 2009
PS3501 S475 F37 2009

This poem first appeared in The World #20 (1970). Illustrations by Trevor Winkfield. Typography by Philip Gallo at the Hermetic Press. Printing by Silicon Gallery Fine Art Prints. Binding by Judith Ivry. Edition of forty copies. Rare Books copy is no. 40, signed by the poet and the artist.

April is National Poetry Month.