Love, By GRACE PALEY

Handsome men wearing red ties walk past my window

not one but three this morning! their coats open

their ties flying as though spring had made some

deliberate move on our street maybe a fur-tipped

bud among the hedges a fact: years and

years ago I saw you pass your face rosy from that

interior lifelong commotion your head forward

stubborn against a March wind day after day

for nearly a month as you walked with con-

siderable eagerness toward your daily life

right past my window I thought who

is that man then I thought oh

I already know him

From “New and Collected Poems” (Tilbury House: $19.95; 95 pp.).

Paley lives in Thetford, Vt. When asked in a 1989 interview for her advice to writers, Paley said: “Be truthful. I mean, don’t lie. But, what I always tell a class first is ‘keep a low overhead.’ ” 1992 by Grace Paley. Reprinted by permission.