October

This week, poet Louise Gluck won the Nobel Prize in Literature, becoming the first American woman to win the award since Toni Morrison in 1993.  Her work, which deals with human suffering, resilience, and starting anew, has become especially relevant during the COVID-19 pandemic. The final verse of her 2004 poem "October" acknowledges the loss of summer, the fear of winter, and reminds us quietly of the dazzling world around us.  

Thank you to Dr. Josyann Abisaab for stopping by the E.D. to share Ms. Gluck's poetry with me.

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October

by Louise Gluck

The brightness of the day becomes

the brightness of the night; 

the fire becomes the mirror.

My friend the earth is bitter; I think

sunlight has failed her.

Bitter or weary, it is hard to say.

Between herself and the sun,

something has ended.

She wants, now, to be left alone;

I think we must give up 

turning to her for affirmation.

Above the fields

above the roofs of the village houses,

the brilliance that made all life possible

becomes the cold stars.

Lie still and watch:

they give nothing but ask nothing.

From within the earth's

bitter disgrace, coldness and barrenness

my friend the moon rises:

she is beautiful tonight, but when is she not beautiful?