"Casablanca" Lilly from my garden, summer, 2009
I want to share this poem with you. Once again I've chosen from David Whyte's collection called "River Flow." I love this particular poem, to me, it stands out. His words speak of authenticity, of how to take the first, sometimes painful first steps to following the heart.
Rhythmically he pulls the reader's focus in with repeating the words "start close in" and "start."
His urging is gentle, but sure. He doesn't suggest climbing a whole mountain at once, instead, he shares wise words with us,..."Start close in, don't take the second step or the third..."
I am reminded of the task I have given myself, to write everyday for a year about "love" and the many forms it takes in this life, and I wonder at times, if its possible for me to do. When I read this poem over, its a meditation that helps me focus on just the here and now, and reminds me to "start close in..."
START CLOSE IN
David Whyte
Start close In,
don't take the second step
or the third,
start with the first
thing
close in,
the step
you don't want to take.
Start with
the ground
you know,
the pale ground
beneath your feet,
your own
way of starting
the conversation.
Start with your own
question,
give up on other
people's questions,
don't let them
smother something
simple.
To find
another's voice,
follow
your own voice,
wait until
that voice
becomes a
private ear
listening
to another.
Start right now
take a small step
you can call your own
don't follow
someone else's
heroics, be humble
and focused,
start close in,
don't mistake
that other
for your own.
Start close in,
don't take
the second step
or the third,
start with the first
thing
close in,
the step
you don't want to take.
