A Slant Message
Tell them how tame geese lure wild ones
close, and then what happens. Go ahead,
explain. Give all the usual reasons
that people use for their treachery.
Far off, mingled with wind and rain, coasting
their strong wings clearly down a long
staircase of air, the wild ones turn arcs of trust,
mated for life by their truth.
Sometimes I wake, my wings are set, dawn
has targeted my face, I hear voices
calling me in. My steep dive true
into the world ends my wide dream.
Faint all day in the sky, trails thrill
their way, like this, into my talk, my telling.
--William Stafford
(1914-1993)
I kept this poem tacked on the bulletin board in my office cubicle for years. Long time ago now, and most of the miseries in my work environments have now melted from memory. This poem is what remains clear and true. I still turn to it in my mind at times when I'm faltering or falling or failing. There is validation here that bypasses acceptance for awareness. A strength that I've collected from this poem comes from the independence that breathes through it and its defiant secret that I share, mourn and embrace.
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