who is the author?
edwin muir
what put the world to sleep?
the seven days war
when did the horses come?
late in the evening
when did they make their covenant with silence?
when the horses came
when was it still?
the first few days
when did they listen to their breathing and were afraid?
the first few days
what happened on the second day?
radios failed
what happened on the third day?
warship passes with dead bodies on deck
what happened on the sixth day?
plane plunged over into sea
radios…
dumb
where do they stand?
corners of our kitchens
where are the radios turned on?
million rooms around the world
if the radio should speak what would they do?
not listen
what would the word do?
swallow its children in one great gulp
what are the nations doing?
lying asleep
how are the nations lying?
curled blindly in the impenetrable sorrow
how does the thought confound them?
with its strangeness
where do the tractors lie?
about the field
what do the tractors look like at evening?
dank sea monsters
what did the ‘dank sea monsters’ look like they were doing?
couched and waiting
what do they do to the tractors?
leave them and let them rust
what do they make their oxen do?
drag their rusty plows
where have they gone past far?
their father’s land
when did the strange horses come?
late that evening in the summer
what did they hear on the road?
strange drumming
what were the heads like?
like a wild wave charging
what had they sold in their fathers time?
horses
why did they sell their horses?
to buy new tractors
fabulous steeds set on…
an ancient shield
what were two characteristics given to the horses?
stubborn and shy
how many colts were there?
half a dozen
where were the colts dropped?
wilderness of a broken world
where did the horses come from?
their own Eden
what have the horses done?
pulled their plows and borne their loads
what can still piece their heart?
free servitude
what changes their life?
the horses coming
