The wind blowing in these trees
is the same wind that blows by the hospital
for children and the institute for the blind.
But it is not the same wind that blew
my father’s hat off at the beach
one afternoon, causing him to chase
after it, scaring up the white birds along the shore.
No, that wind died down
years ago after searching in vain
for the mythic cave where it was said to have been born.
I wonder—
did you happen
to play something
on the piano
before you left
or was it just the wind
from the open door
that turned the page?
has been characterized by The New York Times as America’s favorite
poet. His poems are accessible, clever, entertaining, skillfully made, and often
highly amusing. He is also a brilliantly entertaining public reader of his poetry.
Collins was named U.S. Poet Laureate in 2001 and held the position until 2003.
He was Poet Laureate for the State of New York from 2004 until 2006.