Monday, May 2, 2011

Duriora Virtus - Poetry


Hand painted on tumbled blue stone. (Two of my ancestors.)
I have wept much,
that I may nourish these seeds

I have wept kindness,
that flesh may cover your wounds

I have wept truthfulness,
that tides may sweep clean your shores

I have wept courage
that wisdom may grow under my feet

I have wept much,
that I may be emptied before the rains

and the rains, they will come one day, I know

Note: duriora virtus - means 'virtue tries harder things'

15 comments:

  1. I loved this, wonderful meaningful words.


    Thanks for the comments things are not better, but I am a positive person , my crying done I will face the world.

    Yvonne.

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  2. That's really good. Conveys a lot with so few words.

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  3. Very, very nice. It has personal meaning as well as on so many other levels. Well-done.

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  4. A lot of insight behind your compact copy. I like it a lot.

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  5. "I have wept kindness,
    that flesh may cover your wounds"

    Wonderful.

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  7. I did poetry as part of my MFA over 20 years ago, and this poem is right up with the best of the poems I read in the workshops. The repetition "I have wept" is wonderful, the images vivid, and the repetition of "rains" at the end creates a haunting echo. This poem is JUST beautiful.

    Thanks for wishing me well in learning how to use my scanner. If I just had a younger mind!
    Ann Best, Memoir Author

    p.s. Sorry about the above deleted post. I think it's about time to shut down the computer because my fingers aren't connecting very well with my brain!

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  8. "that flesh may cover your wounds" -- haunting

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  9. Thanks, as always. Strange how words come from nowhere; the line "I have wept courage.." leapt to life full-blown from nowhere yesterday. I suppose the crux of the poem is that sometimes I feel like I've spent most of my life caring for/knocking myself out for others and gotten little or nothing in return. I never begrudged it until now, and I suppose in a day or two I'll be back to my usual sunny self. (Well, maybe not in writing - I do tend toward darker subject matter for some reason.)
    And yes, Stu, i take it as a compliment - and a complement :))

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  10. I loved this, rough and gentle and very powerful.

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  11. I really love your writing! I write as well, so here is a link if you are interested: http://crystalfires.blogspot.com/

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  12. Awesome - this is the first bit of your poetry I've read and it has such powerful lexis.

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  13. One of your pictures is refusing to show up in the post.

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    Replies
    1. Thanks for letting me know. I must have inadvertently deleted it somehow.

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