Monday, September 23, 2013

Tuesday Poem

Image - Andris Apse

 Deep in the Hills

Once I thought the land I had loved and known
Lay curled in my inmost self; musing alone
In the quiet room I unfolded the folded sea,
Unlocked the forest and the lonely tree,
Hill and mountain valley beach and stone,
All these, I said, are here and exist in me.

But know I know it is I who exist in the land;
My inmost self is blown like a grain of sand
Along the windy beach, and is only free
To wander amoung the mountains, enter the tree,
To turn again a sea-worn stone in the hand,
Because these things exist outside of me.

O far from the quiet room my spirit fills
The familiar valleys, is folded deep in the hills.

~ Ruth Dallas


 

11 comments:

  1. How beautiful. And how true.
    Just the same, there are places (and some people) that I do hold deep in my heart. And would continue to do so even if they ceased to exist. So perhaps it is 'Because these things existed ourside of me'. Continuity a bonus, but not necessary.

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    1. Both can be true. I find when I am away from my country for any length of time, it's as if a part of me is missing - the land is viscerally connected.

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  2. Beautiful....what more can I say?

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  3. I love that beach! Isn't the cove shaped like a heart, sort of?
    ~

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    1. The photo is taken in a southern wilderness area called Fiordland. The cove is called Preservation Inlet http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Preservation_Inlet

      It's a stunning part of the world :)

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  4. So very magical and fitting with your photo selection. It's as though living life between the lines springs to life throughout.

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    1. Well said, Karen. I'm glad you liked the poem, and the photo.

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  5. Happy sigh. Perfect visuals. Perfect poetry. I've got to get out more :)

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