Monday, June 10, 2013

The Farmer Wendell Berry and the artist Makoto Fujimura


                                                         
                                                         12th Night by Makoto Fujimura
                                                           ( painted the day after 9/11)

Emma and I are getting ready to drive 3 hours north of here into Virginia for 
the Charlotte Mason Institute Conference. It has a new name and a new location. 

I 've been working on one workshop in particular: Culture Care, featuring the ideas
and voices of Makoto Fujimura and Wendell Berry. It has been rich and nourishing 
to work on my own worldview of the subject. Be Generative. These are two words
Mako uses to explain the need for a transformation of culture. Not a war. 
A care and stewardship so desperately needed especially for the generations to come. 
Poetry Workshop too. Hope those who never have loved poetry will begin to 
rest inside some poems and find poets to listen to. 



Listen to Wendell Berry  read his poem:  HOW TO BE A POET.


How To Be a Poet

BY WENDELL BERRY
(to remind myself)
i   

Make a place to sit down.   
Sit down. Be quiet.   
You must depend upon   
affection, reading, knowledge,   
skill—more of each   
than you have—inspiration,   
work, growing older, patience,   
for patience joins time   
to eternity. Any readers   
who like your poems,   
doubt their judgment.   

ii   

Breathe with unconditional breath   
the unconditioned air.   
Shun electric wire.   
Communicate slowly. Live   
a three-dimensioned life;   
stay away from screens.   
Stay away from anything   
that obscures the place it is in.   
There are no unsacred places;   
there are only sacred places   
and desecrated places.   

iii   

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.

3 comments:

podso said...

Love Berry's thoughts! Have a wonderful time!

Come Away With Me said...

Love this line in particular: "for patience joins time to eternity" . . . it falls beautfiully into line with what I've been reading the past few months about Eastern Orthodox Christianity's view of faith.

Berry and Fujimura - quite a combination!

Brenda Leyland @ Its A Beautiful Life said...

Oh.. this is wonderful. Enjoyed listening to Wendell Berry read it!

My first time here, I believe. I haven't been blogging much lately and want to get back into it, as I miss the companionship of kindred spirits here in our blog world.

I look forward to getting to know you better.

Wishing you glimpses of heaven in unexpected places.....

Brenda