Poets Against War continues the tradition of socially engaged poetry by creating venues for poetry as a voice against war, tyranny and oppression.

Shirley  Kaufman

79 years old
Jerusalem, Israel

Born in Seattle, lived in San Francisco, resident of Jerusalem since 1973. Winner of two NEA fellowships, many other awards. Eight books of poetry, latest: THRESHOLD,to be published by Copper Canyon Press May, 2003. Several books of translations from Hebrew. Latest, from Univ. of Calif. Press,THE FLOWER OF ANARCHY: Selected Poems of Meir Wieselteir, Fall, 2003.

Cyclamen

    "And when it was claimed
     the war had ended, it had not ended."
                           Denise Levertov

They are fragile, pale apparitions
among the stones after the heavy rains,
as if to tell us, "we're back,
you have to take notice."

Rosy and white like spun sugar wings
about to take off, we let these
tremblings alert us again
to possibility.

No more than that. While the planes
roar and practice over our heads,
and we dutifully buy bottled water,
tape for our sealed rooms,

and check our gas masks.
Caught in the same efficiency
that kills.  How many times?
How many times?

                 January 29, 2003
                 Jerusalem

The Last Threshold

I want to believe we still talk about
Peace
      as if it were out there somewhere
an illumination in more Xmas card languages
than anyone speaks

                   "eventually"
won't come for me to see it

Deborah writes
               "we all live in a
morally ambiguous vortex"

but the rough beast is done
with his slouching
                   Bush is massing
his troops for the kill
our dinosaur generals are ready

they are used to the rivers
of blood
         that weep from dismembered bodies
         howl in the streets of Ramallah
         shriek in the streets of Jerusalem

              February 27, 2003
                 Jerusalem

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