Crayola Da Gamba

Merril Gilfillan

Aspen leavesthe size of dimes—as dimes: whippetswithout thewithin: Days heavyon the trumpetvoluntary: Dayspitch black and maize.I had a smooth yoyothose colors once.We’re talking about the sun.Mustard mare,four girls in yellow on her—They’re talking about the sun.

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Headshot of Merrill Gilfillan

Merrill Gilfillan is the author of more than a dozen books of poetry, including Three Roans in the Shallows, One of Them Blue: Selected Poems. He has also published several gatherings of short stories, including Talk across Water: Stories Selected and New, as well books of wide-ranging alfresco essays.

Gilfillan’s Three Roans in the Shallows, One of Them Blue draws from more than a dozen volumes since his first book appeared in 1970, concluding with three short “poetic diaries” in the tradition of Japanese haibun.

"The strongest poems feature a solitary, omniscient observer responding to the sky and land... Deceptively simple, these poems reveal new beauties with each reading."
—Publishers Weekly

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