words of wisdom from a great poet...

[CTyankee]

In a murderous time
the heart breaks and breaks
and lives by breaking.
It is necessary to go
through dark and deeper dark
and not to turn.

That is from a poem by Stanley Kunitz, a great American poet, and written on the eve of WW2.
I think of those words today and think of what it is "necessary" to do and then to act (not to turn).

I think of Kunitz tonight and I ponder...

[bobbieinok]

1. Thanks. A poem to think about.

[Hekate]

2. Thank you for this, Yank. Poets speak the most profound truths about such times, yes?

A month or two back, during a particularly insomniac night, I pulled out my old old favorites. Archibald MacLeish has one about the power of friendship in times like these -- healing, grounding, centering, though he does not use those words at all, of course -- he simply lets it unfold.

Marge Piercy has one that is essentially instructions for a revolution, starting with one person and building 1+2+3+4+n until you have an army too big to fail.

Now I need to go look up Kunitz.

For you, friend Keep shining the light

[CTyankee]

3. Thanks, Hekate. I have loved Marge Piercy's work for some time.

Ditto Kunitz.

[malaise]

4. +1,000

[nolabear]

5. Kunitz has been a favorite. Im a poet and live among them myself

and sometimes it keeps me going. When someone really nails it, it’s as though they know your heart. And poetry with a political undercurrent is so hard to do well, else it just becomes propaganda. But thevdetails tell the story, don’t they?