Skip Navigation

The Windshield

By Paul Muldoon

I

My breath is furring a windshield
where I sit in my windcheater,
engine shut off, jolted by a rearview mirror’s jolt,
and wait for my daughter

to be released from her rehearsal.
A production of Much Ado
in which she’s taking the part of Ursula.
All at once I recognize that shadow

coming toward me as my own,
all at once recognize the Cathedral car park
where my mother has sat

while I’ve been impressed by The Pirates of Penzance
or held forth in a debate, coming through the dark
to find her turned the wrong side out.

II

To find her turned the wrong side out
like a birch relieved of its bark,
a custom relieved of its consuetude,
would be to avail myself of this opportunity to remark

on the pros or cons
of the death penalty or animal captivity
or integrated education.
This house proposes that we are slaves of duty.

This house proposes that we not sully
the memory of a parent, least of all one who sends a judder
through a child,

unleashing rather that selfsame, satin-lined grizzly,
that selfsame man-eater
whose breath is furring the windshield.

Paul Muldoon’s recent collections include Horse Latitudes (2006) and Moy Sand and Gravel (2002), which received the Pulitzer Prize in poetry. He teaches at Princeton University.
Presented by

More at The Atlantic

Third Grade Again: The Trouble With Holding Students Back The Trouble With Holding Students Back
Greece Is on Pace for the Worst Recession in Modern History Why the Greek Recession Could Get Much Worse
An Aging African Leader Whose Time Has Ended Senegal's Persistant President
Beating History: Why Today's Rising Powers Can't Copy the West Why Rising Economies Can't Copy the West
Study of the Day: How We Really Read Restaurant Menus How We Read Restaurant Menus

Join the Discussion

After you comment, click Post. If you’re not already logged in you will be asked to log in or register.
blog comments powered by Disqus
Special Report
The Civil War National Portrait Gallery The Civil War
President Obama reflects on what Lincoln means to him and to America, in an introduction to our special issue. Read more ›

The Biggest Story in Photos

World Press Photo Contest 2012

Feb 15, 2012

On Newsstands Now

Subscribe and SAVE 59%
10 issues JUST $2.45/COPY

The Atlantic Monthly

James Fallows on Obama's first term, Raymond Bonner on the death penalty, Christopher Hitchens on G.K. Chesterton, and more

Browse back issues of The Atlantic that have appeared on the Web. From September 1995 to the present, the archive is essentially complete, with the exception of a few articles, the online rights to which are held exclusively by the authors.

See All Back Issues: September 1995
To The Present »

Premium Archive

For a small fee you can now access more than a century of Atlantic Monthly articles in our online archive. The archive includes articles from 1857 to the present.

Prices » | Login for Saved Items » | Help »

Sort by:
Dates:
From: 
To: 
Author:  (optional)
Title:  (optional)

Facebook

Newsletters

Sign up to receive our free newsletters

(sample)

(sample)

(sample)

(sample)