Annunciation
by Marie HoweOriginal Language English
Even if I don't see it again -- nor ever feel it
I know it is -- and that if once it hailed me
it ever does--
And so it is myself I want to turn in that direction
not as toward a place, but it was a tilting
within myself,
as one turns a mirror to flash the light to where
it isn't -- I was blinded like that -- and swam
in what shone at me
only able to endure it by being no one and so
specifically myself I thought I'd die
from being loved like that.
 | -- from Saved by a Poem: The Transformative Power of Words, by Kim Rosen |
| More Poems by Marie Howe | Next Poem >>
/ Image by Kaeldra-1 /
This is one of those poems that somehow carries deep healing within its lines. Don't rush through this one. Pause for a moment, take a breath, and then read this poem slowly.
Even if I don't see it again -- nor ever feel it
I know it is -- and that if once it hailed me
it ever does--
A flash of genuine insight. Perhaps it will return, or perhaps it is a fleeting glimpse. But once seen, it is known to be real. Once felt, we know we have been touched.
and so it is myself I want to turn in that direction
not as toward a place, but it was a tilting
within myself,
And we can spend a lifetime happily learning to lean more in that direction. Or you can say that we learn to swim in light...
...I was blinded like that -- and swam
in what shone at me
Those closing lines -- wow!
only able to endure it by being no one and so
specifically myself I thought I'd die
from being loved like that.
