My poem " Endurance " is based on a series of quotes and platitudes. Enjoy.
ENDURANCE
Sometimes
you can't worry about hurt
Sometimes you only worry
about where you have to go
says Barack
Do whatever it takes
Where's there's a will
There's a way
Ride the wave
Bite the bullet
Grit your teeth
Wear it and bear it
Courageous souls
are seared with scars
Suffering produces endurance
Endurance produces character
Character produces hope
says the Bible
Onward Christian soldiers
One of the things you do as a Bishop
is disappoint people
(true, you need a haircut, Rowan )
We were looking for the good shepherd
and instead we found the German shepherd
( Your words, not mine Ratzinger )
Stand and never yield
say the Men of Harlech
Cowards die many times
before their deaths
The valiant never taste
their deaths but once
says Will
Never
never
never
give up
says Winston
What does not kill you
makes you stronger
says Nietzsche
Perhaps
Perhaps
Perhaps
croons Doris
Perhaps rethink Nietzsche
says moi
Too late
Gasp
Morto
Amen
False logic, from the ancients. Perhaps.
ReplyDeleteDoesn't make you stronger just because it doesn't kill you. If you're strong enough to make it you were strong enough already.
All these people in power we have to endure huh? No wonder it takes away a person's last breath..Jae
ReplyDeleteYou've assembled quite a tasty mix of references here. I had a similar (and yet very different) reaction to the prompt text. I guess the message struck me as a bit too simplistic too. It's good to see you get a tweak in on the pope :).
ReplyDeleteHere's the link to my poem
Rall, darling - here I am as promised. You have woven the phrases into a meaningful whole.
ReplyDeleteFor old times sake(!) here's mine:
Destiny
From our very first moments the journey beckons.
We cannot know the distance, how smooth or stony the terrain,
How much we may bleed.
Yet if we know love,
Remember eyes that sparkle, lips curled in smile,
A tender caress and the strength of an embrace,
We shall be sustained,
Not leave without a trace.
I could see some positive hopes in your poem..nice
ReplyDeleteSuch a very sweet and touching poem Derrick. I am pleased that the prompt has inspired this response.I am just out of bed with tea in hand preparing for a day of fencing (ugh! )and this has put a smile on my face.
ReplyDeleteThanks
x
I am surprised that both the Archbishop of Canterbury and the Pope have a sense of humour. These are quotes they both made about themselves.
ReplyDeleteI think what Obama was saying that is you just have to get on with things rather than whining,emoting, and navel gazing:)
The Nietzsche quote has always bothered me. I think that every individual should know their limitations and not doing so can be fatal.It's fashionable at the moment to stretch yourself to the limit...I suppose it keeps the drug companies
and therapists happy but that's all!
Since you left it open, I looked at the
ReplyDeletepart about the parasite
So much to enjoy here, co-mingling existentialism with the Pope, hints of lyricism, and a prompt that will play prominently in your memoirs.
ReplyDeleteSpeaking of endurance, here's a region that knows a little bit about this subject:
http://jdmackenzie.blogspot.com/
We are "riding the wave" in Brisbane now. My response to the prompt is flood related, obviously. Can't think of much else at the moment.
ReplyDeleteEndurance
A special thank you to Joanne Johns for submitting a poem and a photographs of the flood from her home in Brisbane. Please read her story and excellent poem.Stay safe Joanne and we are all thinking of you.
ReplyDeleteI did not go out fencing today because I'm too tired. I went to Derrick's blog and his latest post informs us that he is leaving the blogging world. Derrick has been a pivotal force in the poetry blogging world.His poems have delighted us and his generosity as far as commenting goes is unsurpassed. Please visit and say farewell or preferably convince him to stay!
ReplyDeleteAuberon Waugh wrote on the new face of Catholicism and the abandonment of the Tridentine mass in the 1960s.
ReplyDelete"It is hard to believe that these new kindergarten assemblies bear much relation to the ancient institutions of the Church as it survived through the Renaissance.The new Mickey Mouse church has nothing to do with the old religion,being no more than an idle diversion for the comunally minded. Whatever truth survives is outside it, buried in the historical awareness of individual members."
It is always so refreshing to have one's thoughts validated by an eminent author.