A Nature Poem
You expect, perhaps,
a paean to trees,
an effusion on the beauty
of hills and rivers,
or a towering
ode to mountains?
But, floating all over
the internet lately
is the reminder: we too
are part of nature –
and I wonder, what is
my natural self?
If you’ve never known
who you really are,
for all the other people
talking in your head –
parents, teachers, Society –
can you be true to yourself?
‘Know thyself’ said God
to the ancient Greeks.
I always thought that advice
was Biblical, for the Hebrews.
But no, it came from
beautiful Apollo.
Golden Apollo
who embodied the sun,
master of music
and poetry. Or did it come
from Socrates,
most rational of men?
At this point I realise:
all these tangents
and speculations
exemplify human nature.
We are in our heads, far
from the other creatures.
So it’s unlikely
we’ll save them,
or even ourselves,
from what our brains
have wrought. Would I
have done better after all
to write in praise
of seas and mountains,
trees and rivers, hills?
But if you need a poem
to point out beauty,
are we not already lost?
The title is the 22nd prompt from Poetic Asides for April 2021.
I'm sharing this, six months later, at Friday Writings #4 for Poets and Storytellers United, where Magaly invites us to explore 'Pain in Ink' or to choose our own topic. This probably counts as unprompted, although it does record a type of existential pain.
Yes, Rosemary, how do we know what we really are? Good thought question. If we are not down on ourselves we might be what we think we are. If we constantly get flattering tales of what we are, pretty well go with that. I prefer the latter as I get remarks that I don't look.as old and don't seem as old as I am, 88. Also good remarks about my intelligent. I may write about that here, sort of like you did here. Best hurry as I will die before I finish as much as I'd like. :)
ReplyDelete..
Ha ha, I also enjoy being told I don't look 83. (And enjoy being able to tell myself I am a mere babe compared with you! xx) It is also very good to have retained our intelligence, yes.
DeleteI think there must one thing even worse than not finishing all the things one wants to do before dying – and that would be, having nothing left to do and suffering a bland, empty, boring old age.
But if you need a poem
ReplyDeleteto point out beauty,
are we not already lost?... best line I've read all week! Love what you've done here!
Thank you, Rajani, for the high praise!
DeleteHoly mess, girl. This is incredible:
ReplyDelete“Would I
have done better after all
to write in praise
of seas and mountains,
trees and rivers, hills?
But if you need a poem
to point out beauty,
are we not already lost?”
I'm thankful for the poems that point out beauty. If they didn't exist, I think many more people would be lost. Sometimes the lost just need something to jolt them out of their lostness, and often poetry does the trick.
ReplyDeleteTruth to tell, I am too. (Love yours, for instance.) But the above sentiment was true too, in the moment of writing.
DeleteI love this poem and completely agree with Rajani. This is a truly sad poem in a way, but also kind of intriguing.
ReplyDeleteI'm glad you find it intriguing as well as sad.
DeleteMy understanding of the mood of this piem is the extension of self into wonder and knowing more
ReplyDeleteHave a good weekend Rosemary
Much💛love
Something like that, I guess.
DeleteThank you and same to you.
Looking at the title, i was expecting an ode to trees and flowers, hills and rivers.
ReplyDeletebut it is a harsh reminder that we too are a part of nature, that we are the most complex of living things, with intelligence and guile and emotions. Truly a post that makes us ponder.
Thank you; I'm glad it does that.
Delete"But if you need a poem
ReplyDeleteto point out beauty,
are we not already lost?" - I agree with Rajani on these words.
As many among us are blind, is it not in our service to reveal that beauty?
I consider myself more dense than blind and need all the help I can get.
I process a self-reflection almost daily to keep me honest, this assisted me for today.
Good point! And I'm honoured to have assisted in your reflections.
DeleteThat last line is haunting. I hope there are more of us aware of beauty than not. Those of us aware of it are more likely to fight harder to preserve it.
ReplyDeleteIndeed, I hope so too!
DeleteThat is a perfect ending, Rosemary. And I think the answer is, very much so. I also think that we can't really know the mountain or the river or the other beasts that roam the earth if we don't know ourselves. I wonder if it is the reason behind so much human-caused devastation, that some of us are too lost to understand that we are nature.
ReplyDeleteMaybe it depends on upbringing. I was blessed to have parents and extended family who were conservationists long before we even had that word, so I absorbed those attitudes. Sadly, very few people around us seemed to share this viewpoint.
DeleteI don't think most people know who they really are. I may be slightly more connected with who I really am now that I no longer live in the city and am no longer killing myself working 60-hour weeks, but I can honestly say that I haven't known who I am for a long time.
ReplyDeleteYou may well be right. But I sometimes suspect that very few people even stop to wonder who they are.
DeleteProfound are the three closing lines. A brilliant reflective poem.
ReplyDeleteThank you, Khaya, for the kind words.
DeleteA nature poem that isn't about trees or mountains, but human nature. And how much of what we do is natural and how much is imposed by our specific set of beliefs, wants, or desires.
ReplyDeleteQuite so!
Delete