This is the picture that The Merwin Conservancy chose to accompany the poem when they selected it in 2018. It’s credited “Featured photo taken in the Merwin Palm Forest by Maui photographer Morgan Jones.”
Can I get used to it day after day
a little at a time while the tide keeps
coming in faster the waves get bigger
building on each other breaking records
this is not the world that I remember
then comes the day when I open the box
that I remember packing with such care
and there is the face that I had known well
in little pieces staring up at me
it is not mentioned on the front pages
but somewhere back near the real estate
among the things that happen every day
to someone who now happens to be me
and what can I do and who can tell me
then there is what the doctor comes to say
endless patience will never be enough
our only hope is to be the daylight
LIVING WITH THE NEWS was written by W.S. Merwin.
LIVING WITH THE NEWS was produced by The New Yorker.
W.S. Merwin released LIVING WITH THE NEWS on Sat Jan 28 2017.