POETRY IS LIKE TAKING A DEEP BREATH

Friday 25 November 2011

WHAT I BELIEVE




I believe there is no justice,
but that cottongrass and bunchberry
grow on the mountain.

I believe that a scorpion's sting
will kill a man,
but that his wife will remarry.

I believe, the older we get,
the weaker the body,
but the stronger the soul.

I believe that if you roll me over at night
in an empty bed,
the air consoles you.

I believe that no one is spared 
the darkness,
and no one gets all of it.

I believe we all drown eventually
in a sea of our making,
but that the land belongs to someone else.

I believe in destiny 
and I believe in free will.

I believe that, when all 
the clocks break,
time goes on without them.

And I believe that whatever
pulls us under,
will do so gently,

so as not to disturb anyone,
so as not to interfere
with what we believe in.



Michael C. Blumenthal
1949