Wednesday, September 22, 2010

Poetic Space: David Whyte

It's dawned on me that I'm not going to get a lot of "work" done at La Muse. Instead, inspiration and revelation are coming at me so quickly that all I can do is sit back and let it happen. I can feel myself changing shape. Whoever I am at the end of the retreat will be the one who will roll up her sleeves and set to "work."

Poet David Whyte speaks of this transformation in "Revelation Must Be Terrible":


Revelation must be
   terrible with no time left
to say goodbye.

Imagine that moment
   staring at the still waters
with only the brief tremor

of your body to say
   you are leaving everything
and everyone you know behind.

Being far from home is hard, but you know,
   at least we are exiled together.
When you open your eyes to the world

you are on your own for
   the first time...



Join me for Whyte's seminar "What to Remember When Waking" in Vancouver on November 20.


Here is sample of Whyte (on transformation in Rilke's "The Swan"):



5 comments:

Unknown said...

I really liked the poem, plus another good photo.

Ivo Fravashi said...

Come with me to see Mr. Whyte in Vancouver in November. He'll change your life. And seeing you always makes my life better...

Katharine Whitcomb said...

This was thoughtful and thought-provoking!

Ivo Fravashi said...

Thanks, Katharine. As you're a thoughtful poet yourself, I figured you'd see the beauty of it.

Ivo Fravashi said...
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