Friday, April 17, 2015

delight and glory and oddity and light

You're back with the mystery of having been moved by words.
~Dylan Thomas


Continuing with poems about poetry, words, and books in honor of National Poetry Month.


Texas Heaven by Gino

An excerpt from One Star Fell and Another
by Conrad Aiken

...Then let us not be precious of our thought,
Nor of our words, nor hoard them up as though
We thought our minds a heaven which might change
And lose its virtue, when the word had fallen.
Let us be prodigal, as heaven is:
Lose what we lose, and give what we may give,–
Ourselves are still the same...

Read the rest here.

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Plaque for Dylan Thomas at 5 Cwmdonkin Drive, Swansea by John Levin

excerpt from Dylan Thomas' Notes on the Art of Poetry, with line breaks:

I read indiscriminately,
and with my eyes hanging out.
I could never have dreamt that there were
such goings-on in the world between the covers of books,
such sand-storms and ice-blasts of words,
such slashing of humbug,
and humbug too,
such staggering peace,
such enormous laughter,
such and so many blinding bright lights
breaking across the just-awaking wits
and splashing all over the pages in a million bits and pieces
all of which were words, words, words,
and each of which was alive forever
in its own delight and glory and oddity and light.

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You can find the Poetry Friday round-up at Life on the Deckle Edge.

5 comments:

jama said...

Had not seen that Aiken poem before. Like his message.

Thomas's words are magic. Thanks for sharing!

Robyn Hood Black said...

Love this theme of yours - I need to circle back and catch up some.

I didn't know this Aiken poem either -
"O little foplings of the pride of mind,
Who wrap the phrase in lavender, and keep it
In order to display it: and you, who save our loves
As if we had not worlds of love enough–!"
--what a stanza!

Bridget Magee said...

"and splashing all over the pages in a million bits and pieces
all of which were words, words, words," - brilliant!

Mary Lee said...

Thank you for the Aiken excerpt. Will take it to heart in this month of putting my words out there whether they are fully polished or not!

Michelle Heidenrich Barnes said...

Goal for today: slashing humbug.

Goal for tomorrow: splashing all over the pages in a million bits and pieces.

I think I'm all set.