Reply to Oblivion

Reply to Oblivion, Donald Patrick Redheffer's new poetry collection, presents poems covering over two hundred subjects, including aging, wit, democracy, flattery, love, poetry, religion, and war. Every effort has been made to retain those forms that characterize unforgettable songs of the past. Although rhythm and rhyme are critical, meter has been manipulated for artistic impact. They aim for a place where sense and sound merge into the beautiful and true.


The poetry addresses issues of the head and the heart, exploring philosophy, government, and human nature. It revisits old ideas in an effort to make them live in a way not seen before. The poet's mind wanders, not knowing where it will alight.


Milton and His Kind


Shelley, Keats and Tennyson

With voices made to last

Have been replaced by charlatans

Who cry - freedom from the past.


Freedom from excellence

Is the hallmark of their craft.

Great intellects are rarely found

In an artistic overdraft.


The minds who might thrill

The thoughtful and the wise

Are seldom seen in poetry

For the world has passed them by.


What passes for verse

Assaulting our mind

Is unworthy of a race

Spawning Milton and his kind.