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Food for the Soul: “How to be a Poet,” by Wendell Berry
Posted by Wallace+
This poem
is written explicitly for the poet; however it's a gift to anyone who
takes the time to read it, anyone, that is, who is open to and
interested in "what comes from silence."
The closing lines simply blow me away.
Accept what comes from silence.
Make the best you can of it.
Of the little words that come
out of the silence, like prayers
prayed back to the one who prays,
make a poem that does not disturb
the silence from which it came.
For years, Berry has been an inspiration to me, both in the integrity and character of his life, as well as in his writing, be it poetry, fiction, or non-fiction. He has, as they say, an old soul.
I thank God for Wendell Berry.
And I thank God for his life-giving, silence-infused words: indeed, they "[do] not disturb / the silence from which [they] came."
Tags: poem, poetry, wendell berry
