I received this email from a friend today

(Ron Rozewski wrote:)

DEAD MY OLD FINE HOPES
AND DRY MY DREAMING
BUT STILL . . .
IRIS, BLUE EACH SPRING

--Shushiki

Then I looked up Ume Shushiki's work in Google
and found this poem at http://thegreenleaf.co.uk/HP/Women/s/shushiki01.htm

idobata no/ akura abunashi/sake no yoi

jeopardized
by drunkards
the cherry tree at the well

be careful be careful!
of the cherry tree by the well
you're drunk with sake

--Ume Shushiki

It reminded me of Gene (even though he preferred Carlo Rossi
"Paisano" to sake), and I wrote:

To Gene (Ruggles)

poet sits on his bed
drinking wine
tired of wine
he dreams instead

dreams of death
pass into
memory
mere past desire