African-American PoetryAmerican PoetryThe Belfast Group
The Faber Poetry LibraryThe W. B. Yeats CollectionWorld War I Poetry

THE DIVINER

Cut from the green hedge a forked hazel stick
That he held tight by the arms of the V:
Circling the terrain, hunting the pluck
Of water, nervous, but professionally

Unfussed. The pluck came sharp as a sting.
The rod jerked down with precise convulsions,
Spring water suddenly broadcasting
Through a green aerial its secret stations.

The bystanders would ask to have a try.
He handed them the rod without a word.
It lay dead in their grasp till nonchalantly
He gripped the expectant wrists. The hazel stirred.

SEAMUS HEANEY