Poems I dig. . . Tuesday, May 27 2008

There Will Be Rest
Sara Teasdale (1884-1933)

There will be rest, and sure stars shining
Over the roof-tops crowned with snow,
A reign of rest, serene forgetting,
The music of stillness holy and low.

I will make this world of my devising,
Out of a dream in my lonely mind,
I shall find the crystal of peace,–above me
Stars I shall find.

This is my favorite poem. Sara speaks so eloquently about the beauty and just paints a scene. It makes me want to tear up.

The Red Wheelbarrow

so much depends
upon

a red wheel
barrow

glazed with rain
water

beside the white
chickens.

William Carlos Williams

Oh William and your simplicity. The way you can take so few words and lace them with such intense meaning and emotion. He was a travelling doctor to support his writing. I LOVE his writing.

Chicago

Hog Butcher for the World,
Tool Maker, Stacker of Wheat,
Player with Railroads and the Nation’s Freight Handler;
Stormy, husky, brawling,
City of the Big Shoulders:

They tell me you are wicked and I believe them, for I
have seen your painted women under the gas lamps
luring the farm boys.
And they tell me you are crooked and I answer: Yes, it
is true I have seen the gunman kill and go free to
kill again.
And they tell me you are brutal and my reply is: On the
faces of women and children I have seen the marks
of wanton hunger.
And having answered so I turn once more to those who
sneer at this my city, and I give them back the sneer
and say to them:
Come and show me another city with lifted head singing
so proud to be alive and coarse and strong and cunning.
Flinging magnetic curses amid the toil of piling job on
job, here is a tall bold slugger set vivid against the
little soft cities;

Fierce as a dog with tongue lapping for action, cunning
as a savage pitted against the wilderness,

Bareheaded,
Shoveling,
Wrecking,
Planning,
Building, breaking, rebuilding,

Under the smoke, dust all over his mouth, laughing with
white teeth,
Under the terrible burden of destiny laughing as a young
man laughs,
Laughing even as an ignorant fighter laughs who has
never lost a battle,
Bragging and laughing that under his wrist is the pulse,
and under his ribs the heart of the people,

Laughing!

Laughing the stormy, husky, brawling laughter of
Youth, half-naked, sweating, proud to be Hog
Butcher, Tool Maker, Stacker of Wheat, Player with
Railroads and Freight Handler to the Nation.

Carl Sandburg

The love for the city of chicago is beautiful. The love for hard working, sweat and grime type people, damn, i LOVE it! so raw and real and relevant.

Leave a Response »

 

What color is that word? Friday, May 23 2008

I think, and have thought since about 2005 or so that I might have mild synesthesia. I associate colors to different words very closely, and it’s not always a logical association. I noticed this phenomenon when I was really active on the Third Day boards and when I would think about different friends using only their screen names as a reference, it would always been in the same color. The only person’s color I remember was Sally’s, because it was hot pink, and it baffled her and I, because she is far from a hot pink type person.

I have never put much thought into this event. When I read font, or see words, they are always the color they are “supposed” to be, but when I think of a written word, it is in a certain color. Seeing as I typically think in pictures or spoken word, it is rare that I experience this.

So yes, That is a random insight into Angela’s mind. Yet another quirk! Hooray!

Leave a Response »

 

A letter to Me 2038 Friday, May 16 2008

My friend Traci posted in her blog the idea to write a letter to your future self.  The idea is for chronic pain sufferers help deal with the frightening prospect of the future.  It sounded like a pretty applicable idea!  I know I get pretty intimidated by what my future might be like, so here goes!

Dear Future Angela,

Here you are, almost 53.  I wonder what your life has been like.  What highs and lows you have seen.  How many times have you seen the psych ward doors yet again.  Maybe none.  That prospect excites me I must admit.  Unfortunatly it’s possible that you have seen them many more times than the five you have now.  Do you have your Bachelors Degree?  Did you ever attain that ultimate goal of your Masters?

How many of those lofty and random goals did you achieve?  Future Angela, I hope that you stay on this positive track I am set on right now.  I hope you don’t run from the amazing friendships you have in Columbia and I hope you don’t run from success.

Future Angela, I haven’t lived as long as I am writing into the future, which makes this kind of difficult to do, but I know that I look back on the past five years and see so much growth and change in our life, and I hope we stay on that track of foward motion and momentum.  Life is kind of hard and scary right now.  School is so difficult and I don’t really know why, but Future Angela, I’m doing this for you.  I’m doing this so maybe you can live in community in an urban area and love on people and teach them how to garden.  Maybe you can help connect people to the healing power of the ground and working with it.  I know how much that has healed us.

When you read this, Future Angela, Daniel, Catherine and Issac will be grown men and women with families and likely children of their own.  What other neices and nephews might you gain in the years to come.  How exciting will it be to see them grow and mature.  Remember when Daniel was born and it almost hurt to see him, and now he’s one of your best friends?  Then Catherine Bear came along and you were hoping she would be born on your birthday?  Then baby Issac this winter and Daniel and Catherine were BOTH convinced they would have a baby sister!  What kind of men and women will they turn into?  Will it hurt when they have children and you don’t?

Where will Jennifer’s life take her?  Right now she is in Chicago in Culinary school.  You are so excited for her, and have big dreams.  She hates the big city life and just wants to be in a smaller town close to home and you dream of being in a big city far from home!  Will she ever open her small town bakery?  How hard will it be when she graduates next spring and you’re still working on your degree?  That will be difficult.  I know you’re proud of her, but the jealousy twinges every now and then.

Where will life take you dreamer?  A smile is bubbling up on your face right now and you are EXCITED and ready to go.  Dear friend, no matter where life takes you, no matter what struggles and emotional hardships you endure, know that there have been moments like this in life where you have been excited and ready for battle.  Times when you have wanted to surge ahead full force and have known that you are in a wonderful place in life.  The pain of the past is being left there, where it belongs.

I can’t wait to get to know you Future Angela.

Love,

Current Angela

2 Responses »