McNair to Hall: November 4, 1983

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November 4, 1983 Dear Don, Thank you for the note–and again to Joey for the Ironwood. I will send the poems you mentioned to Jerry Costanzo–excepting, that is Thruway, which I’m currently disenchanted with. How do you like my paper? I didn’t think I ordered this short stationery, so had to re-order the long stuff. Soon, everyone will begin to imagine I am professional and thoroughly organized! Love to you and our afflicted friend, Jane, Wes

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Editorial note about this letter: The text of the poem mentioned in this letter, “Thruway,” is below:

THRUWAY

Giants come out of the horizon
with spaces in their hands.
Far off a bridge lifts
it dinosaur back. The road
shifts, opening a city.
This is thruway, this is the great
hum that holds our cars
in the motionless center
of motion. We are the drivers,
each on his way, each
going nowhere with others.

A note from McNair about this letter: Though I eventually pulled this poem from circulation as too weak, I used its opening image of pylons coming out of the horizon years later for my long narrative, “My Brother Running.”