Jane Zwart

I make something of my sadness

I dream I am writing lines, perfecting an unvarying sentence
I write no less carefully for its being illegible. The world where
I strive in my sleep is diferent: I do not know its alphabet. And
the same: I am building a museum from the roof down.

I write no less carefully for its being illegible, the world where
day breaks. Those of us who cannot name the light write, Just
the same, I am building. A museum, from the roof down,
is the home where lines break. Thus, as should be obvious,

day breaks those of us who cannot name the light. Write just
one line and call it a refrain: I will make something of my sadness.
The home is where lines break thus, as should be obvious by now.
I dream I am, writing lines, perfecting an unvarying sentence.

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Jane Zwart teaches at Calvin University, where she also co-directs the Calvin Center for Faith & Writing. Her poems have appeared in Poetry, The Southern Review, TriQuarterly, HAD and Ploughshares, as well as other journals and magazines.