Now I become myself
Now I become myself. It’s taken
Time, many years and places;
I have been dissolved and shaken,
Worn other people’s faces,
Run madly, as if Time were there,
Terribly old, crying a warning,
“Hurry, you will be dead before—”
(What? Before you reach the morning?
Or the end of the poem is clear?
Or love safe in the walled city?)
Now to stand still, to be here,
Feel my own weight and density!
The black shadow on the paper
Is my hand; the shadow of a word
As thought shapes the shaper
Falls heavy on the page, is heard.
All fuses now, falls into place
From wish to action, word to silence,
My work, my love, my time, my face
Gathered into one intense
Gesture of growing like a plant.
As slowly as the ripening fruit
Fertile, detached, and always spent,
Falls but does not exhaust the root,
So all the poem is, can give,
Grows in me to become the song,
Made so and rooted by love.
Now there is time and Time is young.
O, in this single hour I live
All of myself and do not move.
I, the pursued, who madly ran,
Stand still, stand still, and stop the sun!
by May Sarton
— From Collected Poems 1930 – 1993 by May Sarton
What a beautiful and true picture of who we really are, Amira and I found the poem so apt. Where have we got lost as we have grown and taken on so many roles and responsibilities. Hope we could just be ourselves. Lovely poem.
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So very true dear kamal! So very true…so many roles, and so many responsibilities… and now we can finally become who we truly are 🙂
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Yes absolutely true Amira ♥️♥️♥️ so many roles have we played. Let us now atleast take our journey of knowing who we really are. 🙏🙏🙏🙏
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Such truer words never spoken!
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Wonderful comment Linda! Thank you! Let us stop the sun! 🙂 ❤
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Aging, is a beautiful experience and becomes poetic if one is able to see the process “As Is” as a process of soul-maturity! Beautiful poem. This poem can open many locks, if one is really prepared. Thanks for this wonderful piece.
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So true! I find that in my case is giving me an opportunity to do more introspection, to reflect more deeply on things.When we are younger we focus more on the external and the outer life…
I value having now the luxury of “time” since I have retired, and it’s such a gift to have this time to deepen our understanding and to go within…
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Yes, that is true. Only when we settle down, we get to turn back , reflect and introspect. Contemplation, is a great practice. It can open many knots if we pursue this as a sincere practice. Thanks for your encouragement.
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Thank you for your valuable explanations! 🙂
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