United States, (b. 1961)
The Healys had a Farm
- And on that farm, the hysterical
- pitch of pigs singing in the morning,
- cut short by the crack and thud
- of a .22 pistol when we shot
- and slit them, boiled them in barrels.
- Here a warble, there a hiss
- of geese davening in the yard,
- chasing dogs and pinching children
- until we snapped their necks,
- arranged them in the freezer.
- Here a whimper, there a wailing
- of cats begging milk, coiled
- and frightened, a dozen kittens
- stuffed in a feedbag
- and drowned in the pond.
- Here a bellow, there a moan
- of arthritic yellow cows,
- dry and too old for milking,
- pushed and dragged to the truck
- going to the dog food factory.
- And on that farm, the music
- ended. An auctioneer chanting
- quick and low. Here the beds,
- there the horses, everywhere
- the gawking neighbors.
- And on that farm, we sat
- blue in the grass in the wondrous
- ballad of June. Here and there
- and everywhere singing,
- a perfect chorus of silent animals.
About the Poet:
Thomas Healy, United States, (b. 1961), is a poet, writer, curator, activist and public servant. Healy’s work has appeared in the Paris Review, Salon.com, Paris Review, Yale Review, BOMB, Salmagundi, Tin House, Drunken Boat and others. He is the author of three books of poetry, Velvet, Animal Spirits and What the Right Hand Knows
Healy served as Chairman of the Fulbright Scholarship Board (2011-2014) and remains on the executive committee of the Fulbright Board. He served on the Presidential Advisory Council on HIV/AIDS under President Bill Clinton and remains active in global efforts to fight poverty and AIDS.
Healy taught in the creative writing program at New York University from 2010-2013 and was a visiting professor at the New School from 2010-2014. He has also taught at The Frost Place in New Hampshire and Anderson Ranch, the artist residency in Colorado. Since 2009, he has been a guest writer each year at the New York State Summer Writers Institute. He is also the chair of O, Miami Poetry Festival. [DES-01/22]
Additional information:
- Thomas Healy web site: http://www.tomhealy.net/
- Thomas Healy on Twitter: @tphealy