The Red-Letter Poems Project was created in grateful partnership with many of our town’s cultural resources: the Arlington Commission for Arts and Culture, the Arlington Center for the Arts, the Robbins Library, the Arlington International Film Festival, and Arlington Community Education.
We will send out a poem from a new poet every week. If you enjoy them, we encourage you to forward them to friends – in Arlington and beyond – or to post them on your social media platforms. If you would like to receive these poems directly – or to receive notices about future poetry events – send an email to: steven.arlingtonlaureate@gmail.com

Garden of Thought

Waiting for a soul’s call

the swirls in the pebbles

the ripples in the lake

the heartbeats of the crane

at rest you echo

your steps slow on the incline

and on entering the balcony at the third story of the pagoda

the woods nod and wake

the stone lamp sentinels

the pagoda oversees

gardeners are busy from daybreak to twilight

the monk arrives just before new moon

and sits

– Andy Oram