The Memory of Metal by Margarita Engle in Farewell Issue, Journal of Mythic Arts, 2008 — Endicott Studio

The Memory of Metal

by Margarita Engle


A poem is engraved

on the blade of the knife

a man uses for peeling fruit

out in the fields, at slow noon.


The rhythmic whisk

that stirs twirling eggs

is an instrument

of percussion

in the hand of a woman

who daydreams love's tale

lost and found.


A massive bell emerges

from the foundry

giving birth to its own

secret music


molten tunnels

deep earth.










About the Author:
Margarita Engle is the Cuban–American author of books about the island, most recently The Surrender Tree, Poems of Cuba's Struggle for Freedom (Henry Holt & Co., 2008). The Poet Slave of Cuba (Henry Holt & Co., 2006) received many honors, including the American Library Association's Pura Belpre Medal, an International Reading Association Award, and the Americas Award, presented at the Library of Congress.

Copyright © 2008 by Margarita Engle. The poem may not be reproduced in any form without the author's express written permission.



Farewell Issue   |   JoMA Poetry Archives