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This poem is taken from PN Review 77, Volume 17 Number 3, January - February 1991.

Two Poems Peter Goldsworthy

AFTER THE BALL
 
Late-risen, we sit near breakfast
reading large, simple sentences;
outside the remains of Sunday shine
as uselessly as a halfholiday.
Compensation Shock, you read aloud.
How can money bring back our son -
we expected twice as much
.
Baffling, yes - but anything smaller
than headlines feels too complex
or hurts the eyes. Victim Cheated
At Scrabble, Murderer Claims
.
You avert your gaze, suddenly giddy,
trying to fix on more distant points.
Music helps: a proper soundtrack
can ennoble the cheapest movie,
...


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