You can almost hear it —
autumn’s last gasp
a pomegranate split open
grapes hang low drowsy
a pear half-turned to gold
held by the brush
silently resists decay
— jujube

You can almost hear it —
autumn’s last gasp
a pomegranate split open
grapes hang low drowsy
a pear half-turned to gold
held by the brush
silently resists decay
— jujube

time has acquired a stillness,
the hour breathes
over a wine jug,
it’s late, the last blows have been traded,
a clinch and a hang on the ropes
before the bell—I give the world
to anyone who wants it, let them be happy:
— Gottfried Benn
