The future is an infinite succession of presents, and to live now as we think human beings should live, in defiance of all that is bad around us, is itself a marvelous victory.
~Howard Zinn
Happy Poetry Friday! Glad we can gather together even when things are grim.
Sharing a song by Russian songwriter and guitarist Vadim Stroykin, who did not support the war on Ukraine and "fell" from a window today during a police raid.
*********************
I shared this poem in 2018 but had forgotten about it until I saw Diana Butler Bass post it today. Yes, Sonnets to Orpheus II, 29, perfect.
Sonnets to Orpheus II, 29
by Rainer Maria Rilke
Quiet friend who has come so far,
feel how your breathing makes more space around you.
Let this darkness be a bell tower
and you the bell. As you ring,
what batters you becomes your strength.
Move back and forth into the change.
What is it like, such intensity of pain?
If the drink is bitter, turn yourself to wine.
In this uncontainable night,
be the mystery at the crossroads of your senses,
the meaning discovered there.
And if the world has ceased to hear you,
say to the silent earth: I flow.
To the rushing water, speak: I am.
*********************
Shannon Downey's Let's Move the Needle: An Activism Handbook for Artists, Crafters, Creatives, and Makers
This is not normal (cross stitch pattern)
When it all feels insurmountable, do something kind for someone (embroidery)
*********************
Beyond Literacy Link has the Poetry Friday round-up. Thanks, Carol!
19 comments:
Tabatha, Darkness and Strength is a great title for these times. You have so many fine pieces in your blog today. The music is calming but the story of the songwriter is sad. I like Rilke and the ending stanza speaks to me. I am going to post the quote you gave me on the Heartnotes Padlet. Thanks.
Thank you, Tabatha for your strength in the darkness. The music was so peaceful, and what a travesty that Vadim Stroykin was killed. I want to ask magats where they would draw the line. They are rejoicing at the cruelty, persecution, and white supremacy. Would they finally draw a line before pushing an enemy out a window? "If the drink is bitter, turn yourself to wine."
Thank you for this calm today, Tabatha. I love these lines from the poem:
And if the world has ceased to hear you,
say to the silent earth: I flow.
"Let the darkness be a bell tower and you the bell." Such a beautiful sentence. The music you shared is astounding. Such a sad story.
Yes, out of the news of Stroykin, it made me wonder if the US will go that far. We need to carry a heavier load & those in power seem to want to rid us of it all. Thanks for the music in remembrance, Tabatha, & reposting the poem for us.
The Stroykin piece was haunting to listen to as I read the poem. "What batters you becomes your strength." Wow.
Thanks for the patterns. I'm going to share them with my daughter, who has gotten into embroidery. xo
The poem, the story, the music all have moved me this morning. So much sadness and so much beauty.
Tabatha, your post today shows the beauty in art, both in word and note, to soothe an aching heart, inspire and comfort. Thank you for speaking out in such a moving way. I will be pondering this post for some time.
Love everything about your post -- the opening quote, music and Rilke. Stroykin's guitar so beautiful, sad, poignant in view of his death. Rilke's poem captures our current mood too -- in an almost constant state of grief, yet struggling to find strength and rise up. Thanks for all.
Tabatha, Thank you, thank you, thank you.
Many thanks for these salves for our souls to rest in for a few minutes, what a wonderful way to end my evening too, xox
This post is so heavy and yet offers a touch of solace as well. "Let this darkness be a bell tower
and you the bell." Thank you, Tabatha, for sharing.
Wow what a gorgeous piece of music. Thank you. xo
Oooh, the Rilke is beautiful. Thank you, Tabatha.
As I read this poem, I felt my chest somehow opening up and expanding. It was a strange but beautiful sensation. "Let this darkness be a bell tower / and you the bell." Thank you for this, Tabatha. We are all entering the darkness of a bell tower, I fear.
The clanging--Rainer's bell, Airea's cymbals--is not supposed to be comfortable, but if we can become the battering, the change...
Love. Love. Love. Love x 300. The classical guitar piece (so sad that the artist "fell" but glad that nothing can erase his art), and that poem. Oh, that poem. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you x 300!
I'm late to this PF blog...and am currently listening to the great song you shared, "Woke up this Morning," while reading. It's such a great song. I wax and wane with the joy as resistance thing. This weekend I feel stronger than last...but my goodness Vadim Stroykin was just killed? How awful. I was listening to one of the new DOJ memos signed by new AG and it removes DOJ oversight on kleptocracies...meaning the Russian oligarchs who oppose Ukraine will no longer have their assets seized by the US DOJ.
Post a Comment