I remember hearing once that we begin to die the minute we are born. (I think it was Stephen Jenkinson who said this.) This poem is reminding me of this perspective. All we have of our lives, really, is a composition of moments as we live and breathe each day. For some it is not long and for some others of us who get to go the distance, it seems like a long stretch until you begin to understand it will truly end as people around begin to drop like canaries in a coal mine. Suddenly time takes the upper hand in our perception. Often our experiences deepen.
Love is a powerful core of motivation that rules us all whether we admit it or not. Love is like air and, like air, it doesn't need to be defined to be utilize moment by moment. Artists and philosophers wax into describing it but, in the end, it is our personal experiences of love that we carry with us, conscious or not. Because love is powerful it impacts us in many ways - not always in our favor - or as we would expect. A human life is a very complex and extraordinary thing. We still carry love, however, and it can be an extraordinary experience, even when it seems to attack our idea of it. Love, like life, is a process, and it doesn't always feel good but it is always seeded in our souls. If we want love and purpose in our lives, we can have that because not only is love a powerful motivation, so are humans powerful beings...even if we do not know ourselves in that way.
Thank you for listening.
Music: Life can be confusing and difficult and rarely more so than when it is experienced as romantic love. This song came to mind - as of course it would - with this poem. Here Bryan Adams speaks about his love taking a painful turn that he didn't expect but he can also accept the endings of things which is really quite beautiful, as often romances are not appropriate for length, though we may go into them thinking this is so. Being willing to accept that love is a medicine and with all medicines it carries properties that can sometimes be hard to swallow and there can be side effects can enhance our lives. Still love caters to the greater good in us all and this is empowering. So here is Cuts Like a Knife....Of course, there is an apple in this video...
The original post in this series of poems by Hafiz (including an addendum regarding the authenticity of these poems) can be found here. Also, my thoughts on this series a year into these poems, HERE.
The Gift: Poems by Hafiz and translated by Daniel Ladinsky can be purchased here.
My book can be purchased HERE. E-book HERE. The Season Two blogcasts with audio excerpts from my book begin HERE: in Behind The Lines. This reading of the book excerpts in a mixed media format is Season Two of this blog. These recorded excerpts are outside the chronological order in which the book was written. Podcasts with audio only beginning with episode 22 can be found HERE.
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