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This poem is taken from PN Review 28, Volume 9 Number 2, November - December 1982.

Poems Elizabeth Jennings

LAND OF PLENTY

And there was the land of plenty.
We stood upon the edge, the frontier,
We saw the apple-blossom and the roses,
We watched the wholesome green of every vineyard.
We watched the cypresses, steadfast in winter,
Now giving shade to any who desired it.

A land of plenty-that goes back as far
As 'when my ship comes in'. We have passwords,
Keepsake language, ciphers, symbols but
Here are rich stems of tulips, here is sap
Denying gravity. We wait a cautious
Moment before we cross this frontier,
As if we trespassed on gifts undeserved.

A PLACE TO WALK IN

It was a time of peace and people went
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