Poem for Thanksgiving
Thanks
by W. S. MerwinListen
with the night falling we are saying thank you
we are stopping on the bridges to bow from the railings
we are running out of the glass rooms
with our mouths full of food to look at the sky
and say thank you
we are standing by the water thanking it
smiling by the windows looking out
in our directionsback from a series of hospitals back from a mugging
after funerals we are saying thank you
after the news of the dead
whether or not we knew them we are saying thank youover telephones we are saying thank you
in doorways and in the backs of cars and in elevators
remembering wars and the police at the door
and the beatings on stairs we are saying thank you
in the banks we are saying thank you
in the faces of the officials and the rich
and of all who will never change
we go on saying thank you thank youwith the animals dying around us
our lost feelings we are saying thank you
with the forests falling faster than the minutes
of our lives we are saying thank you
with the words going out like cells of a brain
with the cities growing over us
we are saying thank you faster and faster
with nobody listening we are saying thank you
we are saying thank you and waving
dark though it is
Thank you card available on Etsy
Lisa (dinner party): Happy Thanksgiving, Sarah. I hope it’s a nice one.1 year ago
Katie @ cakes, tea and dreams: One of my favorite poems in the world. “We are saying thank you and waving – dark though it is.” Happy Thanksgiving, Sarah.1 year ago
Tori: this is TOO beautiful!1 year ago
Kanesha: Just took a break from sewing and saw this post. Love it!
Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!1 year ago
amy: I love the poems you post. Thank you!1 year ago
bloodorange: Useless piece of triva: there’s a Polish proverb in your quotation widget I’ve never heard of (“Fish, to taste right, must swim three times — in water, in butter and in wine.”) If it’s real, it’s long dated – we don’t usually drink wine with fish, and I’m speaking general truths about Polish cuisine here – and the only thing that comes to mind is a short Polish saying “Fish likes to swim” (“Rybka lubi pływać.)” In vodka, obviously.1 year ago
bloodorange: Continuing with a thank you:
I’ve been a (mostly) regular for about two years now, although recently I’ve been trying to reduce my blog intake. Right now I got a month off work, following a harmless, but rather irritating operation, and I started to reread PoP archives from day one. Which already motivated me to rethink my life priorities, imagine my target life, return to Victoria Moran (forgot I adore her writing!), spend more time walking and treat cooking as less of a challenge and more as fun. Thanks, Sarah – your pebble has definitely done a lot to redecorate my proverbial garden:)1 year ago
Hmm, I don’t know where I found that proverb, but I thought it sounded delicious! And your thanks are very, very kind and certainly very appreciated, bloodorange.1 year ago
Anne: We read this poem as the blessing to our Thanksgiving meal.
It was the back cover poem in this month’s issue of The Sun Magazine. You would like The Sun:
http://www.thesunmagazine.org/1 year ago