Admit, that once you have got up
from your chair and opened the door,
once you have walked out into the clear air
toward that edge and taken the path up high
beyond the ordinary you have become
the privileged and the pilgrim,
the one who will tell the story
and the one, coming back from the mountain
who helped to make it.
David Whyte
From MAMEEN, River Flow: New and Selected Poem.
I would love to tell a story about this house. It's the first I've fallen in love with, in years and years.
I enjoy the writings of the poet, David Whyte. I wanted to add words to this photograph I made ... found, here in Rarotonga.
An extract from his poem, Courage, seemed perfect.
People tell me I'm brave, that I have courage but I have this idea that it's just as brave to choose to stay, sometimes.
TRAM 11
Tram comes. Tram goes. Going: a young Zairean
humming huskily with baby, plenty of time,
intimate with each other, in public
yet still alone. The tram looks on.
Tram comes: a Moroccan woman tries to quiet
her whining little tatty boy. The more she shakes him,
the more syllables fall from him.
Until an Antwerp woman's ta-ta-ta
brings him to himself. And to all of us.
Ting-a-ling, ting-a-ling through the town.
Public transport civilizes us, makes us festive,
maintains our confusion.
Herman de Coninck
Translated to English by Cedric Barfoot and Sonny Williams.
Way back in 2007, that was me reading Herman de Coninck's poem on stage in front of more than a few people.
On a day like today, when that UK storm is passing over us here in Belgium. When the sun comes and goes. When I am waiting on all kinds of things, unable to concentrate, I wander on over to 'Amy's Place' and find treasure like this.
I found Anna Sun over there once.
Amy's poems are like this ...
Reading her website feels like going on a roadtrip, with good music and truly excellent stories.
Belly laughter and red wine, without hangovers.
I found the quote on the photograph below ... over on Amy's website, of course.
This man's poetry ... it needs sharing.
Neil Hilborn has OCD and he performed this poem about how his love life impacted it—and how it impacted his love life.
You can read more about him in an interview over on Brandon Sneed.com
I love the poety of Pablo Neruda.
I love this man's voice ... Tom O’Bedlam.
Maria Popova writes a story over on her website, Dangerous Minds. A website I cannot recommend highly enough. She is superb.
The poem is noted there, and the story too.