Rilke in many of his early poems is "consoling God" says Joanna Macy. And, for her, this poem tells her that "it's okay not to be optimistic or full of hope," but that the main thing is to show up and be present.
Selected Poems
Selected Poems
From his last "Sonnet to Orpheus," Joanna Macy tells us that Rilke has chosen to be with the darkness rather than hide from it. And she shares how she finds resonance with our relationship to our planet.
Here you can read Derek Walcott's poem recited by Kabat-Zinn, saying a prose statement was "bound to be inadequate" in communicating his point. Download the poem and read along.
On the day before the President Obama's inauguration in 2009, Elizabeth Alexander recited this poem on the mall for a soundcheck. And hundreds of people stopped, listened, and clapped.
The last poem of a longer work, Ms. Alexander puts this together with her poem "Autumn Passage" as an example of having those experiences of giving birth and the privilege of sitting with one near the end of life.
In this poem, Ms. Alexander says that the late Lucille Clifton informed her fluid approach to "a very deep kind of ancestral understanding... that moves us into the future." Includes the audio of the poet reading her work.
An excerpt of the poem Ms. Alexander read at the inauguration of President Barack Obama.
Listen to Ms. Alexander recite this poem with and without music. Which one do you like better?
Listen to Ms. Alexander recite this poem with and without music. Which one do you like better?
Listen to Ms. Alexander recite this poem with and without music. Which one do you like better?
