Four New Poems by Leonard Cohen

For Marcia (1982)

There was a dog barking

and a woman coughing

when I received the key

to Eternal life

There was a woman smiling

in a cold sauna

and a monkey collecting money

for an Italian singer

when Satan touched my spinal column

with his ivory fingernail

Many people depend on me

for the proof of God

Lord, I’ve disappointed

most of them

Only Marcia knows

how far I’ve fallen

The Better Part (1981)

Since I surrendered

to my evil nature

and the sloth which lies behind

my frantic activity,

the better part of me

(which I could never locate)

has begun to appear

in the dreams of people

unknown to me.

According to their letters

I am being useful in small ways,

giving helpful counsel,

occasionally effecting a dramatic rescue

in the midst of dangerous events.

The winter gathers strength

against my thin and flimsy strategies.

I can’t get out of bed.

Go, little soldier,

on your ghostly errands,

across the wide Canadian night.

Nothing here detains you now.

Go safely on that shining bridge

which has developed in the air

over the collapse of my daily life.

Religious Talent (1981)

The Jew saw him

kick a dog

and he saw the Jew

whip something soft

The Scotch are

cruel to clouds

and the German believes

he is alone

in the terror of bodies

I myself have chosen

the long way home

far from women

and synagogues

People of little

religious talent

are anxious to know

where I’ve been

A Deep Happiness (1981)

A deep happiness

has seized me

My Christian friends say

that I have received

the Holy Spirit

It is only the end of love

It is only the torn anemone

fastened to the rock

in the salt sea wind

O friend of my scribbled life

your heart is like mine—

your loneliness

will bring you home.