"We romped until the pans
Slid from the kitchen shelf;
My mother's countenance
Could not unfrown itself."
Theodore Roethke, My Papa's Waltz
"What you share with the world is what it keeps of you"
Noah and the Whale, "Give a Little Love"
Why have humans been so concerned with the “impact” or the “legacy” we leave behind? This has been a something I have always struggled with and when Professor Davidson said on the second day of class that he wants to move us away from writing for a “end point” or some kind of ultimate telos this thought got brought back up in my head. Great writers just write and they practice at it so that when they publish something, something they may not even like, the work still leaves readers leaving with that wow effect; where you finish reading the piece of poetry or prose and your mouth is hanging open, maybe even a little spit collecting in the corner of your mouth. Great men and women may have had a goal they were working towards but it wasn’t for some great glamour or fame, they just really wanted to end poverty or write a poem about vultures. But in the end, getting back to Noah and the Wale, these great people are sharing something and those who are receiving this shared knowledge, gift, etc, will know what was contributed.
ReplyDeleteIf you're lucky, and you work hard at it, you achieve a technique that is part hard earned skill and part artistry.
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