Despair
So much gloom and doubt in our poetry -
flowers wilting on the table,
the self regarding itself in a watery mirror.
flowers wilting on the table,
the self regarding itself in a watery mirror.
Dead leaves cover the ground,
the wind moans in the chimney,
and the tendrils of the yew tree inch toward the coffin.
the wind moans in the chimney,
and the tendrils of the yew tree inch toward the coffin.
I wonder what the ancient Chinese poets
would make of all this,
thee shadows and empty cupboards?
would make of all this,
thee shadows and empty cupboards?
Today, with the sun blazing in the trees,
my thoughts turn to the great
tenth-century celebrators of experience,
my thoughts turn to the great
tenth-century celebrators of experience,
Wa-Hoo, whose delight in the smallest things
could hardly be restrained,
and to his joyous counterpart in the western provinces,
Ye-Hah.
could hardly be restrained,
and to his joyous counterpart in the western provinces,
Ye-Hah.
~ Billy Collins ~
(Ballistics)
The first winner of the National Poetry Out Loud contest won it with a Billy Collins poem. Another item on my "To Do" list is to try and start (each, most, some) days in my classroom with a poem or a poetry experience of some kind. (That could include music as well). My excuse has always been the "time" issue. Well. enough excuses. "Had we but world enough and time..." As a result of our book group dialogue yesterday, I can see that we need to make time for nurturing our inner life. I will be blessed by the daily poem, and then I can pass that blessing on to kids. Go figure.
The first winner of the National Poetry Out Loud contest won it with a Billy Collins poem. Another item on my "To Do" list is to try and start (each, most, some) days in my classroom with a poem or a poetry experience of some kind. (That could include music as well). My excuse has always been the "time" issue. Well. enough excuses. "Had we but world enough and time..." As a result of our book group dialogue yesterday, I can see that we need to make time for nurturing our inner life. I will be blessed by the daily poem, and then I can pass that blessing on to kids. Go figure.
Wow! We need this start each morning. (Or in your case, it reads as if it was in the middle of the night!). I can see someone posting a picture and poem on each of the computers, including those in the labs, each morning for teachers, staff, and kids to read. And enjoy! I shall raise my hand and volunteer!
ReplyDeletePlease inform us the websites for these gems.
I try and play classical music each morning, but must admit that NPR often crowds it out.
We all need more Zen (?) and begin out day with peace. It may change our world around!
Thanks Lynn, and cheerio, Carol
This is awesome. Thanks for sharing.
ReplyDeleteBeautiful.
ReplyDeleteSearch Poetry Out Loud on youtube. A lot of contest readings are listed there. I have used some of them in class. The contest reading are much more dramatic compared with the poet's readings of the same poems. It's a very rich dish, and a little goes a long way, but maybe one day out of five, it would be a great way to start a class with a poem.
ReplyDelete