Tuesday, October 8, 2013

Edna St. Vincent Millay

This is the final stanza in the long poem Renascence, which is a beautiful piece of writing.

The world stands out on either side
No wider than the heart is wide;
Above the world is stretched the sky,—
No higher than the soul is high.
The heart can push the sea and land
Farther away on either hand;
The soul can split the sky in two,
And let the face of God shine through.
But East and West will pinch the heart
That can not keep them pushed apart;
And he whose soul is flat—the sky
Will cave in on him by and by.

3 comments:

  1. What a profound and stunning poem in its entirety! I tend to read my Christianity into everything, and this poem gives the best description of Christ's atoning suffering that I have ever come across. It goes on to describe what must have been some of his sentiments as He came back from that experience in His resurrection.
    What a gem you have shared!

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  2. Wikipedia says Millay wrote this poem when she was only 19 years old!

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