Poppies in October (Plath Songs) by ShawnKirchner

Poppies in October

Even the sun-clouds this morning cannot manage such skirts.

the woman

Whose red heart blooms through her coat so astoundingly----

A gift, a love gift

Utterly unasked for

By a sky

Palely and flamily

Igniting its carbon monoxides, by eyes

Dulled to a halt under bowlers.

O my God, what am I

That these late mouths should cry open

In a forest of frost, in a dawn of cornflowers.

October 1962

Shawn KirchnerSylvia Plath

Moderato q = c. 88 pp 5        

Nor

in the ambulance

  long pedals                                                                                                                                            PERUSAL ONLY

      p 9 Ev mp (enter gently) en-thesunclouds- thismorning- cannot-manage- such p 13 skirts Nor mp poco agitato thewoman- intheambu-lance Nor mp poco agitato thewoman- intheambu-lance Whose mf mp   S, A 3                                                                                                                                                                                                  2 PERUSAL ONLY

     mf 17 Whose mf redheartblooms throughhercoat so f astounding-ly Whose mf redheartbloomsthroughhercoat so f astounding-ly Whose mf redheartblooms ...throughhercoatso f astounding-ly redheartblooms ...throughhercoatso f astounding-ly mf f A mp espress. gift, a Poco rit. A tempo21 A mp espress. gift, a p delicato mp                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                             3 PERUSAL ONLY

     lovegift, Utter-ly-unasked- forByasky, 25 lovegift, Utter-ly-unasked- forByasky A mf espress. gift, a cresc. pp 29 byasky Pale p ly-andflami-ly,byasky Pale pp ly-and lovegift, Utter-ly unasked- forBya sky f Igmf pp f       T,B                                                                                                                                                                                                                    4 PERUSAL ONLY

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    O p my41 O pp my God, whatam poco a poco cresc. God, mf whatamI, f whatamI That ff Allargando 45 what mf amI, what f amI That ff I, what mf amI ff Allargando   SI         SII       A                                                                                                                                                                                                                       6 PERUSAL ONLY

      ff A tempo 49 theselatemouthsshouldcryopen,- thesemouths shouldcry That ff theselatemouthsshouldcry A tempo f dim. poco a poco Relaxing the tempo gradually 52 open- Inafor f est-offrost, in mp a open- In mf afor est-offrost, f dim. poco a poco    S,A                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                    7 PERUSAL ONLY

      mp mp rall. Slowly, freely 56 dawn dim. ofcorn- flow'rs. in p a dawn dim. ofcorn flow'rs. mp pmp rall. p pp Rit. 60 niente mp p p pp Rit.                                                                                                                                                                         8 PERUSAL ONLY