Skip to main content
Poets.org

mobileMenu

  • Poems
  • Poets
  • Poem-a-Day
  • National Poetry Month
  • Materials for Teachers
  • Literary Seminars
  • American Poets Magazine

Main navigation

  • Poets.org
  • Academy of American Poets
  • National Poetry Month
  • American Poets Magazine

User account menu

  • Log in
  • Membership
  • Donate
Donate
Poets.org

Poem-a-Day

The only daily poetry series publishing new work by today’s poets.

Page submenu block

  • find poems
  • find poets
  • poem-a-day
  • literary seminars
  • materials for teachers
  • poetry near you

Poem-a-day

Do You Know What Today Is?

unfortunately, or blessed, it could have been
hours, or years, but it was hours
we disappeared into, touch i shouldn’t
savor, not this day, not while missing you,
not this deep in love, but a year ago,
or was it days, we said  i do
which under it laid dozens more commitments,
one being our commitment to pleasure,
to touch, to the touch of others, so  i do
but also  i will continue to do it, that it,
with people that are not you—love,
believe it, or not, lives in that promise
too, i love the sounds others pull from you,
i love your ecstasy even if i’m not around
to engineer it, and here i am, on the other
side of the promise, on the other side
of the world, underneath this person
who i have promised nothing
but my attention and effort until it’s done,
and it was, done under the moon
until the rain started and, then, done
under the rain, i am ashamed to say it,
but i must say it: i would have asked them
to stay, to do it again, to touch me forever
had i not, and thank God i did,
placed my forever in you, but amor,
amor, you should have seen it, us:
beneath the rain, a storm,
under the promise, my loaned breath.

Copyright © 2026 by Danez Smith. Originally published in Poem-a-Day on June 5, 2026, by the Academy of American Poets.

read the rest

Danez Smith

Danez Smith
Photo credit: Anna Min
  • Share on Facebook
  • Share on Twitter
  • Share on Tumblr
  • View print mode
  • Copy embed code
Add to anthology

Sign up for Poem-a-Day

* indicates required

About Poem-a-Day

Poem-a-Day is the original and only daily digital poetry series featuring over 250 new, previously unpublished poems by today’s talented poets each year. Sam Sax is the Guest Editor for June. Read or listen to a Q&A with Sax about their curatorial process, and learn more about the 2026 Guest Editors. Support Poem-a-Day.  

If you have any questions about Poem-a-Day, visit our Poem-a-Day FAQ.

Previous Poems

Title Author Date
Fidelity William Ward Butler 06/04/2026
Alexa for Seniors in Easy Steps Alexis N. Garcia 06/03/2026
At the end of the world, you tell me about the bees Muriel Leung 06/02/2026
Statement of Purpose Kyle Carrero Lopez 06/01/2026
Mr. Pope Allen Tate 05/31/2026
Bone by Bone: A Hypochondriac Inventory Kashiana Singh 05/30/2026
Künstlerroman Sarah Ghazal Ali 05/29/2026
Abecedarian Beginning with Alif Safia Elhillo 05/28/2026
Every Person Is an Address, Every Person Is a Calendar Megan Fernandes 05/27/2026
War Poem Sara Deniz Akant 05/26/2026

Pagination

  • Page 1
  • Page 2
  • Page 3
  • Page 4
  • …
  • Next page Next ›
  • Last page Last »

Newsletter Sign Up

Support Us

  • Become a Member
  • Donate Now
  • Get Involved
  • Make a Bequest
  • Advertise with Us

Follow Us

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Tumblr
  • SoundCloud
  • YouTube
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest

Footer

  • poets.org

    • Find Poems
    • Find Poets
    • Poetry Near You
    • Jobs for Poets
    • Literary Seminars
    • Privacy Policy
    • Press Center
    • Advertise
  • academy of american poets

    • About Us
    • Programs
    • Prizes
    • First Book Award
    • James Laughlin Award
    • Ambroggio Prize
    • Chancellors
    • Staff
  • national poetry month

    • Poetry & the Creative Mind
    • Dear Poet Project
    • Poster
    • Sponsorship
  • american poets

    • Books Noted
    • Essays
    • Advertise
© Academy of American Poets, 195 Broadway 9th Floor, New York, NY 10007
poets .org