Today is my last post as a member of the Teaching Authors blog, and I'm kind of melancholy about it. Stepping down is my choice, and I knew my time here was temporary when I agreed to do it. And there are several good reasons I need to leave the group--time being the most pressing. So in some ways it's a relief.
But...but...I am so amazed by these writers! They talk and brainstorm and support each other behind the scenes much more than I expected. They are a great group--and if I didn't have a blog of my own and too many commitments, I would be honored to stay here with Carmela, April, Esther, and JoAnn. In fact, I wish I had met up with this group years ago! You know how you meet people sometimes and think, "If I had met this person 20 years ago, I bet my life would be different right now"? That's kind of how I feel about the Teaching Authors. They might be surprised to hear this, because I've barely had time to answer emails, and I also chose not to participate in conversations and group decisions too deeply, knowing I would be saying goodbye before too long.
OK, enough melodrama, but, in honor of my somewhat melancholy mood about this, I'm sharing this poem by Lilian Moore, one of my favorite poets. This is from Something New Begins, which is out of print, but Amazon has some used copies, which I urge you to grab! It originally appeared in I Feel the Same Way. I love the slightly bittersweet beauty of so much of her nature poetry.
Until I Saw the Sea
Until I saw the sea
I did not know
that wind
could wrinkle water so.
I never knew
that sun
could splinter a whole sea of blue.
Nor
did I know before,
a sea breathes in and out
upon a shore.
--Lilian Moore, all rights reserved
Isn't that lovely? Sigh... Now, head on over to Laura Shovan's Author Amok blog for the Poetry Friday Roundup!
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15 comments:
I'll miss your posts, Laura. You've been a terrific addition....
Jill
I imagine that you will be missed Laura! I love this blog and yours too, so happy that both will continue. I've seen this poem before and am in awe of Lilian Moore's ability to do so much with so few words. Thank you, and best wishes!
Thanks, Jill and Linda! Linda, I only have a bit of her work and adore it. I am adding her other works to my birthday list. Each time I read the bit I have, I, too, am in awe!
>>"If I had met this person 20 years ago, I bet my life would be different right now"? That's kind of how I feel about the Teaching Authors. <<
Wow, Laura. I'm so honored by this. As Linda says, you will definitely be missed! I'm hoping we can lure you back from time to time. Meanwhile, good luck with your many adventures!
And I forgot to say--this poem is beautiful. Thanks so much for sharing it with us!
I was wondering how you were doing it all! I'll continue to keep in touch with your blog. New adventures await.
Thanks for the lovely, Ah!, poem.
I loved these three lines most of all:
"I never knew
that sun
could splinter a whole sea of blue."
I'm sure you would be missed in Teaching Authors. :)
Appreciations for sharing this beauty Laura.
The lines that stopped me the first time I read "Until I Saw The Sea" by Lilian Moore & they still grab me, are:
...I did not know the wind could wrinkle the water so."
You are deeply appreciated by your readers, including Teaching Authors & their followers where ever you perch, & you continue in this warm, generous community likely with an occasional comment on posts.
Good wishes for all you juggle.
Lovely choice for a goodbye! I'll miss finding your words here, but I can totally imagine that sigh of relief when this commitment came off your plate!
We are a Mutual Admiration Society, Laura!
I've learned so much from you these last way-too-short months and came to know so many poets and poems I wouldn't have known, including this Lillian Moore poem you shared.
How lucky for us and our readers to have YOUR sun and wind, if only for a while.
Your Fan Esther
We are a Mutual Admiration Society, Laura!
I've learned so much from you these last way-too-short months and came to know so many poets and poems I wouldn't have known, including this Lillian Moore poem you shared.
How lucky for us and our readers to have YOUR sun and wind, if only for a while.
Your Fan Esther
So much of life is about tough decisions... about things we don't know or didn't know before, and about simply breathing in and out. Lillian Moore had it right.
This Lillian Moore poem is perfect for explaining how hard it is to know what life will bring next..."until I saw the sea". Good luck with your expanding opportunities, Laura! = )
Laura! I this is one of my all-time FAVORITE poems...that I haven't read in ages. Thank you so much for giving us its beauty...and for giving us YOUR beauty.
Here I am, putting my arms around you in a g'bye-we'll-miss-you-come-back-soon hug:
{{{{{{ <3 }}}}}}}
I so loved this poem that I had to go to Amazon and get a book. I ended up with a signed first edition of Lilian Moore's "Something new begins"! Thanks for sharing it! Now I have my very own treasured copy.
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