“This stunning collection, the work of a poet at the height of his maturity, creates a paradigm for the human condition with its inherent loneliness. Here the speaker ‘watches for life’ from an urban balcony and evokes the characters and moods of those who pass below, capturing something of their souls and reflecting his essential empathy for fellow humans. Aware of a godlike visual advantage in his ‘eyrie’ or ‘control room,’ and at one point invoking ‘a clown in his mad pulpit,’ David Zieroth delights us with playful humour and refreshing self-irony, all the while realizing a vision of life full of bird imagery in which ordinary crows sometimes shine in sunlight.” Gillian Harding-Russell, author of Uninterrupted and In Another Air

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“David Zieroth pries open the deepest philosophical and psychological workings of humanity in the most ordinary moments. At turns humorous, thoughtful, and surreal, Zieroth’s poems are wise and full of sharp observations, sussing out profound meaning in someone’s gait as they walk the lane below or in the way a gull floats with ‘his immaculate white, airy curves.’ You'll be quick to agree with Zieroth when he writes: ‘all I can say / it’s better to take notice.’” Al Rempel, author of Undiscovered Country

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“This book is an unassuming masterpiece. Unassuming in that its speaker is a solitary apartment dweller who spends his time looking entirely away from himself into his back lane surroundings. A masterpiece in that its speaker reveals how he is nothing except what he sees outside himself in human, creaturely, and even mineral disguise. And yet this is not what he is; he is the watcher looking through him, haunting him, sending out his gaze within which is boundless, selfless awareness ‘watching for life.’” Russell Thornton, author of Answer to Blue

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“This traveller’s point of view extends into … watching for life … the world Zieroth views outside his third-floor apartment, the comings and goings in the laneway below him. If such a notion seems restrictive, think again. The poet has discovered a richly varied vista beneath him.” The BC Review

David Zieroth is a Governor General’s Award-winning poet. He lives in North Vancouver, BC.

on the journey toward my dead parents 3
the patchwork pavement of the lane 4
I look down into my back lane 6
on the dual nature of things, I write 8
the yellow dog has no apprehension 10
the skinny man with the stiff leg 12
some men are striders, and here’s one 14
when you died it took me many days 16
and when the poem fails 18
the crow lands, infused with purpose 19
he enters the lane lunging 20
a couple walks in the lane 22
I take these old photos and dump them 23
into air space above the lane 24
she’s down there every day at four 25
the man in the lane today, has he 27
I wish to announce from my balcony 29
I weave an effigy out of black socks 30
I beseech all you below, please 32
in winter the lane is bleak, colourless 34
at night darkness fills the lane 36
I awake in the morning to find 38
where do pigeons go when it rains 40
at last I see the man I’m waiting for 42
those I have said goodbye to 43
as this man walks he tilts, favours 45
I step out for air but it is not 47
how easily I change 49
as the rain falls, distance increases 50
at end of day a moment 52
I feel the lament in me growing 54
reading about an old man dying 55
you would think we’re experts now 56
so much time is spent waiting 58
I take off my glasses and the lane becomes 59
how many of us remain unfinished 61
if only I could take pictures with my eyes 62
I was tired of living alone, she says 63
doggone it, is there anyone down there 64
why is it so difficult to live 65
how I would like to see a ship 66
no borders run the length of the lane 67
I’d like to check off 69
some days I hear thoughts 70
I recognize those who have written 71
I look straight out, not down: 72
bent man below, you may have heard 73
I watch those who are strong 74
above the lane the clouds break apart 75
a tale of two neighbours begins 76
the crow flies in, lands on a power line 78
here comes a face made ugly 79
best answer for how to review your mistakes 81
a body falls out of the sky, legs up 82
when the face of sorrow appears 83
dear city fathers or mothers or planners 85
if only I could see the dead walking here 86
I went to the doctor and the doctor said 88
that black thing on the pavement 90
anyone down there wanna come up 92
it could happen some night 94
he who hesitates is lost is not 95
today I have discovered again how 97
suddenly the heart eases, I don’t know why 98
of course the gods have fled the lane 99

Acknowledgments 101

Review, The BC Review

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Interview, Read Local BC