Love is a Deep and a Dark and a Lonely

Thanks, Sherry, for mentioning this poem, in our little discussion on loneliness from my most recent post. It is true that loneliness is not a shameful thing, that it is common. It feels good to share that simple small thing, that embarrassment.

I really fell in love with this poem, by Carl Sandburg. It was published when he was 85 years old!!

I'm really looking forward to my poetry workshop next week :)


Love is a Deep and a Dark and a Lonely

love is a deep and a dark and a lonely
and you take it deep take it dark
and take it with a lonely winding
and when the winding gets too lonely
then may come the windflowers
and the breath of the wind over many flowers
winding its way out of many lonely flowers
waiting in rainleaf whispers
waiting in dry stalks of noon
wanting in a music of windbreaths
so you can take love as it comes keening
as it comes with a voice and a face
and you make a talk of it
talking to yourself a talk worth keeping
and you find it to be a hoarding
and you give it away and yet it stays hoarded

like a book read over and over again
like one book being a long row of books
like leaves of windflowers bending low
and bending to be never broken