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For a long time I wanted to record Scott Hightower reading from his newest book, Imperative to Spare. I’d heard Scott read elegies written for his partner of forty years, Dr. José Fernandez, who collapsed and died in his arms on the sidewalk right outside their home on the way to work on a beautiful Chelsea morning.
Imperative to Spare is a book by a man who has not been spared, yet manages to write poems that offer a philosophy on how to live. Out of devastating change and paralyzing sorrow, when the poet lifts his head through tears and once again begins to write and look and think, grief gives way to discovery because grief is a new way of looking, nothing is the same old thing.
The four poems below give an idea of the variety of poems in Imperative to Spare, and are also a testament to looking anew. They follow one another at the end of Part I of a five part book. The first is an elegy, but the other three have different landscapes where they wait to be read and continue to live.
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THE WORLD IS FULL OF BEAUTIFUL THINGS
Over slippery stones
and through swirling streams,
he is my steady, soothing counsel.
He wouldn’t have liked
growing into an aging
body. He is beautiful.
And today he dies.
He will never have to suffer
any disabling disease or illness
or the corruption of time.
He has it pretty good.
He has money in his pocket.
And my love. He will never have to grieve
losing me. This is Saturday.
A bluebird sky. He will not have to
be out Tuesday shoveling snow.
Designed to pass. Hang in there.
This morning, his day,
still intertwined. This day too,
will pass. His shadow.
He will not have to percolate decisions.
He will not have to seek peace beside
the still water. He will not have to endure
the stars in the sky. He will be thought.
He will not have to endure the kindness
of friends or strangers, the stares
of a city. He will not have to wait
for the scattering, even hope
for the shattering of new love.
He will not have to walk
through the days ahead
as if he owned them.
SHEPHERD’S SONG
(After Chants d’Auvergne, Baïlero
by Marie-Joseph Cantaloube)
Oh, now so much cleverness
on the other bank! If you find
my comely brother, he not only
plays the harp, but sings like an angel.
He and my other lovely friends will know
the best places to find shade and water
on hot afternoons. On dark nights,
I still use the little lamp you gave me.
They will know where to buy
small trinkets, creams, and the best
perfumes. I only knew you
on this side. You were the finest;
and, as I said before, cleverness
now abounds on the other side!
SONG
Are you wandering
the hills of Úbeda
or are you coming home?
Little Bird, are you flying around
over the hills of Úbeda
or are you coming home?
Chirping Bunny, are you
coming home or wandering
the hills of Úbeda?
Kitten, are you
wandering the hills of Úbeda
or are you coming home?
Puppy, are you
coming home or wandering
the hills of Úbeda?
Leaping Kid, are you
wandering the hills of Úbeda
or are you coming home?
Little Lamb, are you
coming home or wandering
the hills of Úbeda?
Lovely Calf, are you
wandering the hills of Úbeda
or are you coming home?
Little Colt with spindly legs,
are you coming home
or wandering the hills of Úbeda?
Are you coming home
or wandering
the hills of Úbeda?
GASHAPON
Someone took a photograph
of a sign posted inside
a candy vending machine
window face.
As there is a slight reflection,
it is also a self-portraiture.
The sign reads: “The light inside
is broken, but I still work.
“Me, too, vending machine.
Me, too….” Now even as a bit
of an outlier, my inner compass
is fouled up… but my understanding
of my purpose and the dexterity
of my work remains clear,
acute, and intact. All poetry
is erotic. From someone’s
mouth, to someone else’s ear.
In the video, Scott Hightower reads four poems from Imperative to Spare. Enjoy.
Imperative to Spare is published by Rebel Satori Press. You can check it out here:
https://rebelsatori.com/product/imperative-to-spare/
You can check all of Scott Hightower’s books here:
http://www.scotthightower.com/books.html
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