An Inaugural Prayer
Lord, Whom we may not mention
Except when we complain,
Lend us the rapt attention
Of Thine ancient brain.
Let words like
faith and
power,
Integrity and
change,
Be bartered in this hour,
And let those words estrange
Us from our friends and neighbors
In long-drawn arguments
Till the fruits of our labors
Ripen to common sense.
May no vote be decided
Save when we disagree;
A nation undivided
Never can be free.
http://www.thebestamericanpoetry.typ...erican_poetry/
I have the 2008 ed. on order, so I'll have to wait until I get it to see if I can plug a line in somewhere. Any suggestions from those who have it already would be appreciated.
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Here's the final version, showing strict compliance with the contest rules:
An Inaugural Prayer
Lord, Whom we may not mention
By name, Great Undefined,
Lend us one dimension
Of Thine awful mind.
The words will come--
faith, power,
Integrity, and change--
To be bartered in this hour,
And may those words estrange
Us from our friends and neighbors
In long-drawn arguments
Till the fruits of our labors
Ripen to common sense.
Let no vote be decided
Save when we disagree.
A nation undivided
Never can be free.
[Per the rules of the competition, The first four words of line 5 are taken from R. T. Smith's "Pentecost"; the second word of line 13 is line 6 of Charles Bernstein's "Ku(na)hay," and the first word of line 15 is line 19 of the same poem.]
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