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poetry. no i mean poetry.

On 10, Nov 2011 | 3 Comments | In Uncategorized | By Natalie



i have two friends
who first introduced me
to poetry.


and not just the rhyming
imagery, prose and verse.
i mean the kind
that when the reader
reaches the end of the poem,
the reader will never
be the same.


poetry that is
earth altering
jaw clenching
wind knocking.


poetry that exposes.
poetry that disrupts.
disturbs.


poetry that introduces you to
a piece of your soul
you never knew was
in you.


so i thought i would share.
these words…today.


today
when the changing of seasons
is in the air.


today
when the busy people
busy around.


today
when dreamers dream.

today
when occupiers occupy.

today 
when the trees groan and bend
to the will of the wind.


today
when hopefuls beg themselves
not to give up.


but i must warn you.
only read if you are ready.
only read if you are ready…

Love the quick profit, the annual raise,
vacation with pay. Want more
of everything ready-made. Be afraid
to know your neighbors and to die.
And you will have a window in your head.
Not even your future will be a mystery
any more. Your mind will be punched in a card
and shut away in a little drawer.
When they want you to buy something
they will call you. When they want you
to die for profit they will let you know.


So, friends, every day do something
that won’t compute. Love the Lord.
Love the world. Work for nothing.
Take all that you have and be poor.
Love someone who does not deserve it.
Denounce the government and embrace
the flag. Hope to live in that free
republic for which it stands.
Give your approval to all you cannot
understand. Praise ignorance, for what man
has not encountered he has not destroyed.


Ask the questions that have no answers.
Invest in the millenium. Plant sequoias.
Say that your main crop is the forest
that you did not plant,
that you will not live to harvest.
Say that the leaves are harvested
when they have rotted into the mold.
Call that profit. Prophesy such returns.


Put your faith in the two inches of humus
that will build under the trees
every thousand years.
Listen to carrion – put your ear
close, and hear the faint chattering
of the songs that are to come.
Expect the end of the world. Laugh.
Laughter is immeasurable. Be joyful
though you have considered all the facts.
So long as women do not go cheap
for power, please women more than men.
Ask yourself: Will this satisfy
a woman satisfied to bear a child?
Will this disturb the sleep
of a woman near to giving birth?


Go with your love to the fields.
Lie down in the shade. Rest your head
in her lap. Swear allegiance
to what is nighest your thoughts.
As soon as the generals and the politicos
can predict the motions of your mind,
lose it. Leave it as a sign
to mark the false trail, the way
you didn’t go. Be like the fox
who makes more tracks than necessary,
some in the wrong direction.
Practice resurrection.



this poem is by a brilliant man,
wendell berry.
entitled:
Manifesto: The Mad Farmer Liberation Front.


do you have a poem that
you love?
and loves you?


please share.


– n.













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Comments

  1. Love Wendell Berry, going to have to sit with this one some more.

    Your name has been coming up at our house this past week, Natalie. C saw your poem and asked to read it. Now you have introduced him to W.B. He said “whoa.” I thought I would send you what he wrote and posted this week, he said I could. : )
    http://thebeatoftoday.posterous.com/

  2. whoa. thanks for asking C if you could pass on his work…that’s the kind of poetry i am talking about. i’m storing that one away. thanks heather.

  3. Beautiful. Beautiful.Beautiful.

    Cindi
    Cottencandyclouds.blogspot.com

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