A Thin Ray of Moonlight

Daisy and Gatsby (Mia Farrow and Robert Redford)
One of my kids asked me to read Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby so we could discuss it. Reading Gatsby, I noticed some prose poems waiting to be pulled out:

Warm Human Magic
by F. Scott Fitzgerald

Daisy began to sing with the music
in a husky, rhythmic whisper,
bringing out a meaning
in each word
that it had never had before
and would never have again.

When the melody rose,
her voice broke up sweetly,
following it,
in a way contralto voices have,
and each change
tipped out
a little of her warm
human
magic
upon the air.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Bending
by F. Scott Fitzgerald

Almost the last thing I remember
was standing with Daisy
and watching the moving-picture director
and his Star.

They
were still under
the white-plum tree
and their faces were touching
except for a pale,
thin
ray
of
moonlight
between.

It occurred to me
that he had been very slowly
bending toward her
all evening
to attain this proximity,

and even while I watched
I saw him stoop
one ultimate degree
and kiss at her cheek.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

* Information about the annual one-day F. Scott Fitzgerald Literary Conference. The conference holds two short story contests which are open to residents of Maryland, Virginia, and Washington D.C.

* The text of The Great Gatsby at Project Gutenberg Australia

Teaching Authors is hosting the Poetry Friday round-up today.