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"I would rather be ashes than dust! I would rather my spark burn out in a brilliant blaze than be stifled by dry-rot. I would rather be a meteor, every atom of me in magnificent glow, than a sleepy, permanent planet. The proper function of man is to live, not to exist. I shall not waste my days in trying to prolong them. I shall use my time." ~Jack London

Tuesday, January 17, 2006

The Secret, By Denise Levertov

Two girls discover
the secret of life
in a sudden line of
poetry.

I who don't know the
secret wrote
the line. They
told me

(through a third person)
they had found it
but not what it was
not even

what line it was. No doubt
by now, more than a week
later, they have forgotten
the secret,

the line, the name of
the poem. I love them
for finding what
I can't find,

and for loving me
for the line I wrote,
and for forgetting it
so that

a thousand times, till death
finds them, they may
discover it again, in other
lines

in other happenings. And for
wanting to know it,
for

assuming there is
such a secret, yes,
for that
most of all.

4 comments:

Out Of Jersey said...

I love Denise Levertov's poetry, there is a transendance that is lacking in a lot of modern american poetry, but her spiritual side really brings that out. Have you ever been to the Dodge Poetry Festival?

Michelle said...

Damn, I love Denise Levertov!

gkgirl said...

wow...i love that...
i'm going to check into her
and see what she is all about
thanks
:)

MB said...

I have always loved this poem. Thanks, Frankie.