[1302] Opening Words

Guest poem submitted by Rob Bos, <rbos@>:

I believe the earth
exists, and
in each minim mote
of its dust the holy
glow of thy candle.
Thou
unknown I know,
thou spirit,
giver,
lover of making, of the
wrought letter,
wrought flower,
iron, deed, dream.
Dust of the earth,
help thou my
unbelief. Drift
gray become gold, in the beam of
vision. I believe with
doubt. I doubt and
interrupt my doubt with belief. Be,
beloved, threatened world.
Each minim
mote.
Not the poisonous
luminescence forced
out of its privacy,
The sacred lock of its cell
broken. No,
the ordinary glow
of common dust in ancient sunlight.
Be, that I may believe. Amen.

	-- Denise Levertov

This poem, "Opening Words", by Denise Levertov, was pointed out to a
friend, after I included a segment of "Goodbye to Tolerance" in my
signature.  I immediately fell in love with it, because it so thoroughly
amplifies my own feelings on the nature of the Divine, and the world,
and a peculiarly atheist form of spirituality.  "I believe the earth" is
something that should be a guidepost, a starting point. It exists, and
we find "in each minim mote / of its dust the holy / glow of thy
candle".  This is an ode to doubt, to belief and unbelief, to the world
and its making and giving and creating...

.. and the phrase "each minim mote" is beautifully assonant.

The more I read of Ms. Levertov, the more I like her.

Rob Bos.