Poetry from Jake Heggie’s Eve-Song

Composer - Jake Heggie

Poet - Philip Littel

 

 

1. My Name

 

Eve, Eve, must be the sound I made as I was being made.

Eve, Eve, Eve.

Out I came, made up by a couple of men.

Old man made me out of Adam’s rib…

Oh, did he?

God made Adam, God made Adam

God Adam God damn it!

My children are going to know who their mother is.

Eve.

Mad bad Eve the amnesiac, Eve, Eve the nymphomaniac ME!

Was young man Adam completely unconscious, as I was manufactured?

Did he groan and whimper EVE as I slipped out?

Did God mutter EVE as he slapped me into shape?

Did I scream EVE at the inevitable rape?

Or was EVE the last breath shaped into a sound by my mother’s mouth as I came out?

I was too little to save her or remember anything about her… Eve.

What are they trying to tell me with their stories?

I am allowed no clothing.

I am allowed no shame.

I have nothing to wear by my beautiful hair, my body, may face, and MY NAME.

Eve.

 

 

2. Even

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In the evening I am at peace.

In the evening I hear everything more clearly

Everything to the hearer all the world does sing

With a ringing and a quickening

Overhead the birds wheel and turn

Overhead the setting sun reddening

No longer burns

At the waters edge a wind brushes by me

With a susurration, grass and leaves, flowers grow against the darkening trees

Eyesight and the light both go.

Every evening the forest darkens

In the evening my senses sharpen

I have no peace at night

I have no peace at night.

 

3. Good

Good Morning

Whoever you are.

Good morning. Do you have a name yet?

Let me name you.

It must be the right name

So I don’t Forget.

What shall I name you? What is your name?

I have not Eaten yet.

Are you slow, are you fleet?

Are you obedient?

Are you Good to eat?

Almost everything is good to eat.

Good morning.

If I could I would eat the world

Because its Good.

 

4 . Listen

 

Its entire body ripples back and forth like a sentence, fascinating.

Do you want to be like God?

Do you want to be like God?

How do you mean? Be old and have a penis?

I don’t think so.

No.

Do you want to be like God?

Do you want to be like God?

You know what I mean.

Yes. I do.

My entire body ripples up and down like a story.

I am listening.

 

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5. Snake

 

Snake, is it true About the fruit?

My intuition Tells me what you say about This fruit Is true.

I’d like to find out, snake.

I’d love to know.

Go ahead in front of me

Where I can see you.

I will follow you.

 

The snake is in the tree.

Where I cannot see him.

He is now the colour of Shadows.

Very few things are

As visible as I am

When I’m clean.

When a thing is visible,

It always means that the thing

The tree frog, or that fruit means to be seen.

 

Visibility’s A warning or An invitation

And it never tells you Which.

What’s visible will either Feed you, Mate with you, Or kill you.

Either way you gain Experience.

Here goes.

 

Sweet.

Sour.

Salty.

Bitter.

And the taste of air, Of rottenness, Earth, And water.

Now I know.

 

6. Woe to Men

 

Woe to man

What can a man expect?

Think of all the riches, gifts, Woman brings in her train,

Oh, Besides her obvious differences

(Inside out below the waist, Bigger breasts, smaller brain) …

Can you think of any? Anything?

She is nothing But trouble

Oh Nothing but trouble.

Nothing. Nothing. She is no thing.

You haven’t lived until

A man has said that to you.

Woman Because she was born of man.

Woe to man Because he is born of woman.

La da dee da dum.

La da dee da da dum.

La da dee dum da.

 

 

7. The wound

 

The wound Reopened

Opens the tomb

Her womb Quickens The woman Sickens And hungers Hugely

The world in her belly

The sky in her head

Limbs heavy, she swells she swells

A drop of water will not hold

Let go, let go, let go.

Not yet, not yet, the new formed baby will not let me let it go Just yet.

What is already in that head?

Forget.

 

 

 

8. The Farm

 

As I recollect

It was more like a farm

Than a garden.

We all worked.

It was a nice farm.

Trees. Everything grew. Good soil

And plenty of water.

No. it didn’t rain,

We lived by the rivers.

The Tigris and the Euphrates.

You might say

That’s where it all started.

 

 

*From  doctoral essay by Michelle Marie Fiertek titled "Performance Guide to Eve-Song by Jake Heggie,"

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