“The story of each stone leads back to a mountain.”
W. S. Merwin
American Sonnet for the New Year
by Terrance Hayes
things got terribly ugly incredibly quickly
things got ugly embarrassingly quickly
actually things got ugly unbelievably quickly
honestly things got ugly seemingly infrequently
initially things got ugly ironically usually
awfully carefully things got ugly unsuccessfully
occasionally things got ugly mostly painstakingly
quietly seemingly things got ugly beautifully
infrequently things got ugly sadly especially
frequently unfortunately things got ugly
increasingly obviously things got ugly suddenly
embarrassingly forcefully things got really ugly
regularly truly quickly things got really incredibly
ugly things will get less ugly inevitably hopefully
Published in the print edition of The New Yorker, January 14, 2019,
This is the last Fourteenlines for 2019, the last of the decade. Fitting to end it with music. I continued my tradition of assembling a mix of my favorite new songs that were released in 2019 and giving it away as gifts. This years mix was a two cd set with 34 songs. I include one song from each artist. There is a certain sound and rhythm that runs through it but the genres run the gamut from rock to blues, to jazz, to soul to pop to singer songwriter. The best new artist is J. S. Ondara who has local ties to Minneapolis currently. He is a talent to watch. Best comeback goes to P. P. Arnold. First new album in many years and she has made a great one.
I have shared links for my five favorite songs of the year. Enjoy and Happy New Years. May 2020 bring you peace, health and prosperity.
Fourteen Lines 