Wednesday, December 17, 2008

in a corner collecting dust i find:



Autumn
Rainer Maria Rilke

The leaves are falling, falling as if from far up,
as if orchards were dying high in space.
Each leaf falls as if it were motioning "no."

And tonight the heavy earth is falling
away from all other stars in the loneliness.

We're all falling. This hand here is falling.
And look at the other one. It's in them all.

And yet there is Someone, whose hands
infinitely calm, holding up all this falling.

in college I wrote a term paper on Rilke and modernism - I wish I could go back and grant myself the understanding I have now... the understanding, but not the experience - if only life permitted us this luxury!

8 comments:

Lydia said...

That is a Rilke poem I've not read. Letters to a Young Poet and Book of Hours Love Poems to God are two books I treasure. Fascinating that you wrote a term paper on Rilke in college. Your tiny purple-colored thoughts on it are truly beautiful, little bird.

Britt said...

Your brain is so full of this stuff. Do you memorize these or do you have 23092834 books? Either way, I'm so impressed. And I love hydrangeas. :)

Anonymous said...

beautiful photos, beautiful words...

Kim said...

Very lovely and touching words :)

Kim x

robin ann mcintosh said...

thanks, all!

OmarSal said...

"a billion stars go spinning through the night,
blazing high above your head.
But in you is the presence that
will be, when all the stars are dead."

robin ann mcintosh said...

you have to put a name to that, oms!

Anonymous said...

i LOVE rilke. and these photos match the poem ever so perfectly.

 
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