In the shape of this night, in the still fall
of snow,
Father
In all that is cold and tiny, these little birds
and children
In everything that moves tonight, the trolleys
and the lovers,
Father
In the great hush of country, in the ugly noise
of our cities
In this deep throw of stars, in those trenches
where the dead
are, Father
In all the wide land waiting, and in the liners
out on the
black water
In all that has been said bravely, in all that is
mean anywhere
in the world, Father
In all that is good and lovely, in every house
where sham and
hatred are
In the name of those who wait, in the sound
of angry
voices, Father
Before the bells ring, before this little point in time
has rushed us
on
Before this clean moment has gone, before this night
turns to face
tomorrow, Father
There is this high singing in the air
Forever this sorrowful human face in eternity’s window
And there are other bells that we would ring, Father
Other bells that we would ring.
_______________________________________________________________________
Kenneth Patchen's first book of poetry, Before the Brave, was published by Random House
in 1936. His earliest collections of poetry were his most political and
led to his being championed, in the 1930s, as a "Proletariat Poet".
This description, which Patchen rejected, never stuck since his work
varied widely in subject, style and form. As his career progressed,
Patchen continued to push himself into more and more experimental styles
and forms, developing, along with writers such as Langston Hughes and Kenneth Rexroth, what came to be known as jazz poetry.
He also experimented with his childlike "painted poems," many of which
were to be published posthumously in the 1984 collection What Shall We Do Without Us. Patchen's Collected Poems, in which "At the New Year" appeared, was first published in 1969, just a few years prior to Patchen's death.
_______________________________________________________________________
Kenneth Patchen's first book of poetry, Before the Brave, was published by Random House
in 1936. His earliest collections of poetry were his most political and
led to his being championed, in the 1930s, as a "Proletariat Poet".
This description, which Patchen rejected, never stuck since his work
varied widely in subject, style and form. As his career progressed,
Patchen continued to push himself into more and more experimental styles
and forms, developing, along with writers such as Langston Hughes and Kenneth Rexroth, what came to be known as jazz poetry.
He also experimented with his childlike "painted poems," many of which
were to be published posthumously in the 1984 collection What Shall We Do Without Us. Patchen's Collected Poems, in which "At the New Year" appeared, was first published in 1969, just a few years prior to Patchen's death. 
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