Demand It Courageously by Julia Hartwig
MARGINALIA • SKIP TO THE POEM
1.
She’s a marvel, my love is, is how a letter ends. This is how a stranger tells me about lives unfurling, and of which I have no part of but am a witness to all the same.
2.
I think it is incredibly brave and endearing, making room for wonderment.
3.
It was difficult to get up today. It took hours. What are you if not some wounded animal, I think.
4.
But to be thankful nevertheless. To be grateful for things that arrange themselves into your life precisely because there is room.
5.
I have been, at some point, been astonished by someone’s being. I wonder now if anyone, at some point, has been amazed that I exist.
6.
But shouldn’t that have been: what a marvel that I exist!
7.
It is exactly what you think it is, I whisper to myself, birds fluttering about inside my chest.
Demand It Courageously
Julia Hartwig
Translated by John and Bogdana CarpenterMake some room for yourself, human animal.
Even a dog jostles about on his master’s lap to
improve his position. And when he needs space he
runs forward, without paying attention to commands
or calls.
If you didn’t manage to receive freedom as a gift,
demand it as courageously as bread and meat.
Make some room for yourself, human pride and
dignity.
The Czech writer Hrabal said:
I have as much freedom as I take.
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This poem appeared in In Praise of the Unfinished by Julia Hartwig, published by Knopf, 2008. Shared here with profound gratitude.
Read more works by Julia Hartwig • Find books by this poet • Or view my library
Explore poems in pursuit of: being human • courage and what it takes • the self • Or browse the index
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—
billy
Cummings says it all in one line……
“You are whatever a moon has always meant, and whatever a sun will always sing is you”……and
You Learn
by Jorge Luis Borges
After a while you learn
The subtle difference between holding a hand and chaining a soul
That love doesn’t mean leaning
And that company doesn’t always mean security
You begin to learn that kisses are not contracts
And gifts are not promises
You accept your defeats with your head held high and your eyes ahead
With the grace of a woman , and not the grief of a child
You learn to build your roads on today
Because tomorrow’s ground is uncertain and has a habit of falling away
After a while you learn
That even sunshine burns if you get too much
You learn it doesn’t matter how much you do care, some people don’t care at all
And you accept no matter how good a person is, they will hurt you once in a while
And you need to forgive them for that
You learn that talking can relieve emotional pain
You discover it takes several years to build a relationship based on confidence
And just a few seconds to destroy it
And you can do something in an instant, that you will regret for the rest of your life
After a while
You will learn that true friendships continue to grow even from miles away
And that what matters isn’t what you have in your life, but who you have in your life
And that good friends are the family who allow us to choose
So plant your own garden, and decorate your own soul
Instead of waiting for someone to bring you flowers
You learn that we don’t have to switch our friends, if we understand that friends can also change
You realise that you are your best friend
And can do anything, or nothing
And have good moments together
You learn you really can endure
You are strong and have worth
After a while you learn, and you learn…
With every goodbye…
You learn…
Briana
“And this is the wonder that’s keeping the stars apart…”
You are a marvel. An evolution of the mystery and magic in this unfolding universe. I’m so grateful for you, for this. Peace.
Erin
‘To be grateful for things that arrange themselves into your life precisely because there is room.’–i like this.
and the poem. the poem is perfect for tonight. (thank you.)