“My poems start to support one another, saying things not only as individuals, but in concert. They are in conversation with each other, sometimes across decades.”
I love the idea of poems supporting each other. Being in concert. What a beautiful way to imagine repetition.
Also the image of the stars as witness and of the moment of the holding hands existing eternally in starlight is gorgeous.
Well done on prize for this. I'll add that this was a really hopeful message to read on a post election day, I'll add two quotes I read here on Substack.
'Simply the thing that I am shall make me live'.
Shakespeare.
‘This world is full of conflicts, and full of things that cannot be reconciled. But there are moments when we can transcend .. embrace the whole mess .. and that's what I mean by 'Hallelujah’.
This is so true, and such a wonderful way to look at the repetition of themes and even words or phrases (which I've also found so many times in my own poems):
"And I love what I find in the repetition. I begin to see threads running through my work. My poems start to support one another, saying things not only as individuals, but in concert. They are in conversation with each other, sometimes across decades."
"And because we shine back..." I appreciate the reciprocity here. Everything has its own light, no quantity too small. Nothing out of place. Nice poem.
This is beautiful Adam. I had the same feeling yesterday when I felt I wrote part of an older poem into my latest post. Themes and phrasings can repeat. Maybe because they are too important.
“To see how deep the well goes, or if a vein of art leads all the way to the heart of the mountain.”
I like that image of a vein of gold. For me, the through-line is usually hidden and only lights up when I turn around and see where I’ve been.
Yes! I have the same experience, Ann, of turning around and thinking "Oh, THAT'S what I've been doing..."
“My poems start to support one another, saying things not only as individuals, but in concert. They are in conversation with each other, sometimes across decades.”
I love the idea of poems supporting each other. Being in concert. What a beautiful way to imagine repetition.
Also the image of the stars as witness and of the moment of the holding hands existing eternally in starlight is gorgeous.
Thank you, Melanie! I'm so glad you enjoyed the poem. Thanks for taking the time to comment. :)
Well done on prize for this. I'll add that this was a really hopeful message to read on a post election day, I'll add two quotes I read here on Substack.
'Simply the thing that I am shall make me live'.
Shakespeare.
‘This world is full of conflicts, and full of things that cannot be reconciled. But there are moments when we can transcend .. embrace the whole mess .. and that's what I mean by 'Hallelujah’.
Leonard Cohen
Thank you 😊 (And thanks for sharing the lovely quotes.)
This is so true, and such a wonderful way to look at the repetition of themes and even words or phrases (which I've also found so many times in my own poems):
"And I love what I find in the repetition. I begin to see threads running through my work. My poems start to support one another, saying things not only as individuals, but in concert. They are in conversation with each other, sometimes across decades."
Thank you, Margaret! :)
"And because we shine back..." I appreciate the reciprocity here. Everything has its own light, no quantity too small. Nothing out of place. Nice poem.
Thank you, Jed! I’m glad you enjoyed it.
This is beautiful Adam. I had the same feeling yesterday when I felt I wrote part of an older poem into my latest post. Themes and phrasings can repeat. Maybe because they are too important.
'This light left those stars
an eon ago —
we see the fire of their past.
And, because we shine back,
the stars
witness ours' . ⚡
Thank you! 🙏 I'm happy to hear the experience is mutual.