An Old Friend

W. H. Auden, “That Night When Joy Began”

That night when joy began
Our narrowest veins to flush,
We waited for the flash
Of morning’s leveled gun.

But morning let us pass,
And day by day relief
Outgrows his nervous laugh,
Grown credulous of peace,

As mile by mile is seen
No trespasser’s reproach,
And love’s best glasses reach
No fields but are his own.

I love the stanza here; always have. This quarter, among other short verse-writing assignments, I'm going to have my students try to figure out the rules that generate it, and write one stanza themselves. A lot of such assignments this quarter, for a change. I'll let you know how it goes!