Self Portrait
It doesn’t interest me if there is one God
or many gods.
I want to know if you belong or feel
abandoned.
If you know despair or can see it in others.
I want to know
if you are prepared to live in the world
with its harsh need
to change you. If you can look back
with firm eyes
saying this is where I stand. I want to know
if you know
how to melt into that fierce heat of living
falling toward
the center of your longing. I want to know
if you are willing
to live, day by day, with the consequence of love
and the bitter
unwanted passion of your sure defeat.
I have heard, in that fierce embrace, even
the gods speak of God.
— David Whyte
from Fire in the Earth
Minutes after learning of Margaret Thatcher’s death yesterday, I came across this poem from David Whyte. Coincidence, hmmmmm. From Death. To embracing that fierce heat of living. The image is of Robbie Williams, as we continue to ride the UK train this morning…whose portrait…if you can look back with firm eyes…seemed to captured the spirit of Mr. Whyte’s marvelous poem. This is where I stand...
Source: Thank you (again) WhiskeyRiver. Image: SolarNavigator.net
Live & Learn 
Reblogging this with appreciation for the chills it evoked and the resounding ‘yes’ it prompted..
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Yes. That’s exactly what it evoked from me. Chills. YES.
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Reblogged this on Waiting for the Karma Truck and commented:
Yet again David Kanigan (Lead.Learn.Live) inspires..I reblogged this with an awareness of chills traveling my spine and an unprompted “yes” that escaped from my mouth in the early hours of the morning. Enjoy
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Thank you Mimi
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Very good.
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It is…
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I read this and the image of a standard bearer in fierce battle holding the line came to mind.
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Interesting, I wouldn’t have thought of that, but now that you point it out, I can see how you landed there.
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Chills, yes.
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So many words come to mind…
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Powerful!
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Yes, very much so.
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Beautiful, thank you for sharing!
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Thanks Vicki
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Speechless…
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🙂
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I love this poem…enough to have posted it myself at one time. Thanks, David, for taking me back to it. 🙂
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Wow, you many I poached it from you and didn’t give you any attribution?
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No, I didn’t mean that at all…of course not. Mine is lost somewhere on my endless “uncategorized” list. One of these days, I need to go back and clean things up a bit. I do have a couple of his other poems in the right category. He’s a wonderful poet. I appreciated your reminder of that. That’s all. 🙂
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I read this in the very wee hours of this morning and had time to just be with this …and I love it. It resonates through and through for me, and so eloquently and powerfully what I know to be true for me and what I just tried to decribe to a friend last night. I need to send her this..and say this..this is what I meant. Thank you so much for sharing! xox
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Glad it was put to good use Bonnie. Thank you.
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This is good because its got me wondering if its good. Despair? defeat? gods and God? Not too much like Gary Snyder but thanks for the reference — I’ll try some others too and see.
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Yes Frank. Lot’s to think about here.
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Excellent. Whyte is one my favorites.
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Me too Bill. Thanks.
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Reblogged this on jaclynwragg and commented:
these eyes have just as much power as your words.
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Thanks for sharing.
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Extremely powerful poem.
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It is Elizabeth, thank you.
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“its harsh need to change you” <<contextually amazing. SO to Mimi for the reblog that led me here. 🙂
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Thank you Charron for dropping by and for following.
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