Friday, September 21, 2018

Poetry Friday: Gerard Manley Hopkins

My Own Heart let me more have Pity on

My own heart let me more have pity on; let
Me live to my sad self hereafter kind,
Charitable; not live this tormented mind
With this tormented mind tormenting yet.
I cast for comfort I can no more get
By groping round my comfortless, than blind
Eyes in their dark can day or thirst can find
Thirst's all-in-all in all a world of wet.

Soul, self; come, poor Jackself, I do advise
You, jaded, let be; call off thoughts awhile
Elsewhere; leave comfort root-room; let joy size
At God knows when to God knows what; whose smile
's not wrung, see you; unforeseen times rather - as skies
Betweenpie mountains - lights a lovely mile.

Gerard Manley Hopkins

I shared this before back in 2015.

This week's roundup is here

9 comments:

Linda B said...

One poem to keep close, "let/Me live to my sad self hereafter kind". Thanks, Ruth. FYI- your link on the PF posts takes us to Erin's post again, instead of yours! Happy Friday!

Ruth said...

Thanks, Linda! Fixed it!

Linda Mitchell said...

Thanks for fixing the link! Oh, my....what a mood this casts. And, it's pouring rain here.

Jone said...

The. “Comfort root room” ...beautiful...I think this is a poem I need to have in my collected poems.

Tabatha said...

Do you think we need some comfort, Ruth? :-) I wanted to hear someone read it so I checked YouTube (I was hoping for Tom Hiddleston, tbh). I found this fellow, who does a lovely job: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x5L26s_M5QU

Michelle Heidenrich Barnes said...

Thanks, Ruth. I think sometimes people forget that being kind to others necessitates being kind to ourselves too. Note to self: By people, I mean me.

jan godown annino said...

Appreciations for introducing me to this G.M.H poem.
It is easy for me to be hard on myself & not accept my human condition, which is always, always, imperfection.

Michelle Kogan said...

I like the ending lines, " as skies
Betweenpie mountains - lights a lovely mile."
I love the "Betweenpie mountains–" sounds like it lifted a bit here. Thanks Ruth.

Kay said...

This poem offers such comfort these days. Thank you for sharing.