Dream Song 30: "Collating bones: I would have liked to do"

John Berryman

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Collating bones: I would have liked to do.
Henry would have been hot at that.
I missed his profession.
As a little boy I always thought
'I'm an archeologist'; who
could be more respected peaceful serious than that?

Hell talkt my brain awake.
Bluffed to the ends of me pain
& I took up a pencil;
like this I'm longing with. One sign
would snow me back, back.
is there anyone in the audience who has lived in vain?

A Chinese tooth! African jaw!
Drool, says a nervous system,
for a joyous replacing. Heat burns off dew.
Between the Ices (Mindel-Würm)
in a world I ever saw
some of my drying people indexed: "Warm."

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