Nature, whose sweet rains fall of just and unjust alike, will have clefts in the rocks where I may hide, and secret valleys in whose silence I may weep undetected. She will hang the night with stars so that I may walk abroad in the darkness without stumbling, and send the wind over my footprints so that none may track me to my hurt: she will cleanse me in great waters, and with bitter herbs make me whole.
Oscar Wilde in De Profundis
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Related quotes
You Say The Battle Is Over
This song appears on two albums, and was first released on the autograph album, and has also been released on the wildlife concert album as a live track.
And you say that the battle is over
And you say that the war is all done
Go tell it to those
With the wind in their nose
Who run from the sound of the gun
And write it on the sides
Of the great whaling ships
Or on ice floes where conscience is tossed
With the wind in their eyes
It is they who must die
And it's we who must measure the loss
And you say that the battle is over
And finally the world is at peace
You mean no one is dying
And mothers don't weep
Or it's not in the papers at least
There are those who would deal
In the darkness of life
There are those who would tear down the sun
And most men are ruthless
But some will still weep
When the gifts we were given are gone
Now the blame cannot fall
On the heads of a few
It's become such a part of the race
It's eternally tragic
That that which is magic
Be killed at the end of the glorious chase
From young seals to great whales
From waters to wood
They will fall just like weeds in the wind
With fur coats and perfumes
And trophies on walls
What a hell of a race to call men
And you say that the battle is over
And you say that the war is all done
Go tell it to those
With the wind in their nose
Who run from the sound of the gun
And write it on the sides
Of the great whaling ships
Or on ice floes where conscience is tossed
With the wind in their eyes
It is they who must die
And it's we who must measure the loss
With the wind in their eyes
It is they who must die
And it's we who must measure the cost
Words and music by david mallett
song performed by by John Denver
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Keep Me Fully Glad
II
Keep me fully glad with nothing. Only take my hand in your hand.
In the gloom of the deepening night take up my heart and play with it as you list. Bind me close to you with nothing.
I will spread myself out at your feet and lie still. Under this clouded sky I will meet silence with silence. I will become one with the night clasping the earth in my breast.
Make my life glad with nothing.
The rains sweep the sky from end to end. Jasmines in the wet untamable wind revel in their own perfume. The cloud-hidden stars thrill in secret. Let me fill to the full my heart with nothing but my own depth of joy.
poem by Rabindranath Tagore
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Psalm 126
The rains that fall from heaven
Fall down upon our face
And the dawn is surely coming
Yet in the darkness we embrace
Perhaps you've never seen the dawn
Yet in your heart you know it's true
That beyond the edge of all you know
There is a sky that's ever blue
To plough the field of perpetual winter
For a harvest never seen before
Is to walk in darkness without stumbling
Is to open up a heavenly door
What lies beyond, no one can see
But through the door there is no fears
This is a place where seeds are found
They are for those who sow in tears
And with these seeds and with our tears
We'll plough the fields until the end
With weeping hearts the tears are watered
And then the harvest God will send
Then all our tears are wiped away
Our hearts are filled with laughter
We now embrace perpetual dawn
And blue skies ever after
poem by Frank McEleny
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Those Who Sow In Tears
The rains that fall from Heaven
Fall down upon our face
And the dawn is surely coming
Yet in the darkness we embrace
Perhaps you've never seen the dawn
Yet in your heart you know its true
That beyond the edge of all you know
There is a sky that's ever blue
To plough the field of perpetual winter
For a harvest never seen before
Is to walk in darkness without stumbling
Is to open up the heavenly door
What lies beyond, no one can see
Yet through the door there is no fears
This is a place where seeds are found
They are for those who sow in tears
And with the seeds and with our tears
We'll plough the fields until the end
With weeping hearts the seeds are watered
And then the harvest God will send
Then all our tears are wiped away
Our hearts are filled with laughter
We now embrace perpetual dawn
And blue skies ever after!
poem by Frank McEleny
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Song V: Through the Trouble and Tangle
Love is enough: through the trouble and tangle
From yesterday's dawning to yesterday's night
I sought through the vales where the prisoned winds wrangle,
Till, wearied and bleeding, at end of the light
I met him, and we wrestled, and great was my might.
O great was my joy, though no rest was around me,
Though mid wastes of the world were we twain all alone,
For methought that I conquered and he knelt and he crowned me,
And the driving rain ceased, and the wind ceased to moan,
And through clefts of the clouds her planet outshone.
O through clefts of the clouds 'gan the world to awaken,
And the bitter wind piped, and down drifted the rain,
And I was alone--and yet not forsaken,
For the grass was untrodden except by my pain:
With a Shadow of the Night had I wrestled in vain.
And the Shadow of the Night and not Love was departed;
I was sore, I was weary, yet Love lived to seek;
So I scaled the dark mountains, and wandered sad-hearted
Over wearier wastes, where e'en sunlight was bleak,
With no rest of the night for my soul waxen weak.
With no rest of the night; for I waked mid a story
Of a land wherein Love is the light and the lord,
Where my tale shall be heard, and my wounds gain a glory,
And my tears be a treasure to add to the hoard
Of pleasure laid up for his people's reward.
Ah, pleasure laid up! Haste then onward and listen,
For the wind of the waste has no music like this,
And not thus do the rocks of the wilderness glisten:
With the host of his faithful through sorrow and bliss
My Lord goeth forth now, and knows me for his.
poem by William Morris
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Footprints
Footprints in the sand
As deep as they might be
Will someday be washed away
By the wind or by the sea.
The footprints have been placed
Upon the beaches sand
In memory of a creature
Proclaiming Himself as Man.
I followed this set of footprints
Placed upon the beaches Earth
To find out where Man had gone to,
And to find out His Earthly worth.
Many of the footprints were deep,
Placed upon the beaches sand,
From the troubles that Man had kept
With memories held in His hand.
And the footprints, that were placed wide
They were many upon the beach,
Were they from the trouble that Man did hide,
Or was it from happiness, that was out of reach.
And then as I noticed in front of me
The footprints were swept away,
Man again was forgotten
Until He returned another day.
Then I looked behind me,
I saw my footprints in the sand
And I know someone will follow them
While wondering, who was this Man.
Had my footprints been placed deep,
Or were they placed apart very wide,
Will they wondered if I ever laughed,
Or if I cried, from sorrows I couldn't hide.
So I closed my eyes and I wondered
About the footprints that I had placed
Someday, will Man He follow them,
While believing my life a waste.
So I continued my walk upon the beach,
I was a very joyful and happy Man,
I left my sorrow and trouble behind me,
In my footprints in the sand.
Randy L. McClave
poem by Randy McClave
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NIght Feeders
As the light begins to hide from the darkness
and the nocturnes again rise from their sleep.
The creatures of the night shout out in excitement
as those that normally slumber begin to weep.
For they know and fear what is coming
and it won’t be long before they arrive.
No matter where they hide there’s no escape
from those that walk, but are not alive.
As the night noises and howls become louder
the stalkers move closer to their prey.
The sweet smell of blood is what they’re after
and they always get their way.
S
poem by Orlando Belo
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I Bless You, Forests
I bless you, forests, valleys, fields, mountains, waters,
I bless freedom and blue skies.
I bless my staff and my humble rags.
And the steppe from beginning to end,
And the sun's light, and night's darkness,
And the path I walk, pauper that I am,
And, in the field every blade of grass,
and every star in the sky!
O! if only I could encompass all life,
And join my soul with yours.
O! if only I could embrace you all,
Enemies, friends and brothers, and all nature,
And enfold all nature in my arms!
poem by Aleksey Konstantinovich Tolstoy
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To R A A
Was it not a great end?
Wrote your Philip, with a story
Of a great deed, a great death--
Not foreseeing his own glory
And his budding laurel-wreath--
In the last words he should send.
Philip's followed Alan's lead.
They are gone into the night
With the great heroes of old,
With the stars, the stars they are bright;
They are warm; they are not cold.
They live: they are not dead.
But the silence aches. O friend
In the darkness, cold and stricken,
For anodyne, antidote,
Tell your dead heart, that it quicken,
The last words that Philip wrote:
'Was it not a great end ?' A great end!
poem by Katharine Tynan
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Nature's Ying and Yeng
Nature's Ying and Yeng (Nature's Wonder)
By godfrey morris
Perfect beauty flows in abundance from her bosom
so vividly displayed in divine design.
Splendor is sure in green vegetation within the midst
of the sun-lit glow, illuminating the deep blue engulfing sphere.
In nature, lies great serenity that leaves all to wonder
for more of its majestic glory. Her secrets are a mystery,
as in its peace great horror wreak.
What new ills do omens seek?
The earth trembles, a sudden shock that tend to break the faults of rocks.
The violent wind may blow, displacing all earthly things you know.
Violent fire emerges from a crack to burn all things within its track.
water travels upon the earth to sweep and clean for all to weep.
Earth- wind, fire and water, the elements of our nature's wonder.
Copyright © 2012
poem by Godfrey Morris
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Night Litany
O Dieu, purifiez nos cceurs!
Purifiez nos coeurs !
Yea the lines hast thou laid unto me
in pleasant places,
And the beauty of this thy Venice
hast thou shown unto me
Until is its loveliness become unto me
a thing of tears.
O God, what great kindness
have we done in times past
and forgotten it,
That thou givest this wonder unto us,
O God of waters?
O God of the night,
What great sorrow
Cometh unto us,
That thou thus repayest us
Before the time of its coming?
O God of silence,
Purifiez nos cœurs,
Purifiez nos cœurs,
For we have seen
The glory of the shadow of the
likeness of thine handmaid,
Yea, the glory of the shadow
of thy Beauty hath walked
Upon the shadow of the waters
In this thy Venice.
And before the holiness
Of the shadow of thy handmaid
Have I hidden mine eyes,
O God of waters.
O God of silence,
Purifiez nos cœurs,
Purifiez nos cœurs,
O God of waters,
make clean our hearts within us,
For I have seen the
Shadow of this thy Venice
Floating upon the waters,
And thy stars
Have seen this thing, out of their far courses
Have they seen this thing,
O God of waters,
Even as are thy stars
Silent unto us in their far-coursing,
Even so is mine heart
become silent within me.
Purifiez nos cœurs,
O God of the silence,
Purifiez nos cœurs,
O God of waters.
poem by Ezra Pound
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The Death of Silence
Let's celebrate the day
The death of silence
When even the soundless creature
Leave an echo
When the quiet evening sky
Speaks more volume
Let's celebrate the day
The death of silence
When the darkness of night
Is calmed by the song of stars
When this cruel and frightening world
Is cheered by the joy of life
Let's celebrate the day
The death of silence
When the trees swaying their branches
Whispering the news from afar
When the stone awaken to tell the story
And no more secret remains hidden
Let's celebrate the day
The death of silence
When the wind fills the void
And noises the ears
When the sunshine touches the skin
And screams in eyes
Let's celebrate the day
The death of silence
When you could taste the heart
Inside the food you eat
When you could understand
The meaning the breath that taken
Let's celebrate the day
The death of silence
When smile is enough
To erase the rotten doubt
When love is abundant
To wash the bitter pain
Let's celebrate the day
The death of silence
When the soul finds its freedom
And not chained in the grief of body
When the call is passing
Through the memory and time
poem by Maria Sudibyo
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The Birth of Spring
The Birth of Spring
By: Adam M. Snow
A birth of Spring brings flowers bloom,
A beauty that reigns from nature's womb;
Bringing forth a new day of yore;
A beauty that reigns forevermore.
Heaving the life of nature to nature,
As the world within matures.
The flowers blooms ever so gracefully,
A Spring sunshine O' so blissfully.
The life of Spring so frail and gentle,
Like a rose or that of lentil.
It is evermore so sweet to wonder,
The scent of Spring would sunder.
And by the night, the stars glisten be,
Spring at it's glory, a song decrees.
A melody so sweet and peaceful to be heard;
The calming voice of nature's word,
That glistens the wind and flowers alike,
Flowing 'gainst the wind like a shrike.
She dance with a melody,
Like a wild felidae;
The petals of roses flows the wind.
I stand here in awe of nature's friend.
poem by Adam M. Snow
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You Say That The Battle Is Over
AND YOU SAY THAT THE BATTLE IS OVER
JOHN DENVER
And you say that the battle is over,
And you say that the war is all done-
Go tell it to those with the wind in their nose
Who run from the sound of the gun,
And write it on the sides of the great whaling-ships,
Or on ice floes where conscience is tossed-
With the wild in their eyes, it is they who must die
And it's we who must measure the loss.
And you say that the battle is over,
And finally the world is at peace-
You mean no one is dying, and mothers don't weep,
Or it's not in the papers, at least.
There are those who would deal in the darkness of life,
There are those who would tear down the sun,
And most men are ruthless, but some will still weep
When the gifts we were given are gone.
Now the blame cannot fall on the heads of a few,
It's become such a part of the race;
It's eternally tragic for that which is magic
To be killed at the end of the glorious chase.
>From young seals to great whales,
>From waters to woods,
They will fall just like weeds in the wind;
With fur coats, and perfumes, and trophies on walls:
What a hell of a race to call men.
And you say that the battle is over,
And you say that the war is all done-
Go tell it to those with the wind in their nose
Who run from the sound of the gun.
And write it on the sides of the great whaling-ships,
Or on ice floes where conscience is tossed;
With the wild in their eyes, it is they who must die,
And it's we who must measure the loss.
With the wild in their eyes, it is they who must die,
And it's we who must measure the cost
song performed by by John Denver
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Chilling wind in Summer Night
Nature is most mysterious of its kind
In the summer night, chilling wind
I waked and walked on the terrace
Of the SPA Hostel, a place
Where I usually walk during morning
During the early morning
Or better say late night
I see the sight in the sky
Above so high
Wind is blowing
Incessantly with air gushing
Through the tiny pores of shirt
Touching the tender heart
The wind is chilling but
It doesn't hurt
For it is relief from summer heat
Summer and no more sweating
The weather is of high rating
Change in the moon of nature
The changing nature of the nature
A few hours ago it had rained for a while
The wind was not so strong and agile
Adding to the chill few rain drops fall
Intermittent drizzling occurs
During this late hours
Surrounded by dimming light
Chilling wind in summer night
{Written on 17 April,2012 during my stay at School of Planning and Architecture hostel at New Delhi from a real experience of nature's bounty}
poem by Shashikant Nishant Sharma
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The Human Spirit
Oh brightest of the brightest stars
You shine out greatly in the darkest night
And all around the darkness falls
Yet you do not, you stand and fight
Time and again, wave after wave
The darkness assaults your soul
Threatening to smash to a thousand pieces
Yet you still stand tall and whole
Relentlessly the scorching fire rains down
And you are battered from every side
Weaker now, to your knees you fall
Desperately seeking for a place to hide
For one who once stood tall and strong
Now forsaken and lost and no more fight
Surrounded by darkness on every side
You must now flee into the darkest night
poem by Frank McEleny
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Silence Echos
Silence
makes my heart break
Silence
Love, does not make
Silence
Was it all just a terrible mistake?
Silence
Was love just a game, just fake?
Silence
Leaves me heartbroken
Silence
Kills he feeling behind words unspoken
Silence
has is a shield you hide behind
Silence
Guards what's on your mind
Silence
Chills your heart's sound
Silence
Love cannot silently be found
Silence
has turned your dreams blind
Silence
is darkness in which you cannot find
Silence
Crushes the hopeful feelings that were kind
Silence
Of emptiness it did remind
Silence
Silence took all I sought to find
Silence
Silence was hurtful and unkind
Silence
Will kill love before it ripens on the vine
Love will go silently
But it's lonely hurt will echo for all time
poem by James T. Adair
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October 2005
(The Earthquake in Pakistan)
The massive blunders evoke the massive waves,
Of wrath that push the inhabitants to the graves;
The faults of kings fall upon the heads of subjects,
The cottages and the palaces, their ferocity raves.
Ah! What a horrible devastation eyes have seen,
The sepulchral cries shook the spheres between,
The earth, and sky; the nation has no stock of tears,
To make the pangs wash, to make the breasts clean.
The villages, the towns, the cities have been raved,
Preyed upon; ravaged and razed as the Will craved,
They have become an extended theatre of tragedies,
Time differs not, ripe or unripe, paved or unpaved.
The valleys, the green slopes and the rising peaks,
Where upon the life laughed with the shining cheeks,
And smiled with the sweet curves upon the rosy lips,
How sooner laughter changed into inaudible shrieks!
Ah! What terrible deaths occurred under the heaps,
Unendurable weights made sudden ferocious leaps,
The beams on legs, pillars on heads, earth in mouths,
How hastily they all moved to the black dismal deeps!
Humanity neither has enough waters in the eyes,
To meet the magnitude of calamity; in the breast sighs,
To consume pangs, and overflowing bereavement,
Nor rains have mourning drops reserved in the skies.
Oh! Mansehra, Balakot and Bagh, cities of the land,
Blood of your sons and daughters have made grand,
Each plain, each valley, each hill and each mountain,
Your dust, your rocks, your waters and your sand.
On your fate Nature Herself will ceaselessly lament,
Each year snowy flakes will fall to weep and repent,
The trickling tears will form ponds, rills and rivers,
Each year nightingales will sing elegies on the event.
poem by Muhammad Shanazar
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Days of Infamy
The day recedes into peaceful night
spreading gentle darkness
over wide California fields,
the flames of history
nearly forgotten
but for the ember glow
In the wrinkled cobalt sky.
But we remember
bloody days
when war-planes roared
into the rising Pacific sun
and ripped it
in sanguine strips.
Bombs pierced polished decks,
and amazed sailors dove
into crimson waters,
as the Rising Sun spread darkness
Over half the globe
sixty-nine years ago...
... yet just say the date
and silence fills any room.
We remember movies we’ve seen
Of dive-bombers and chaos,
heroes rising in fighters to
stave off the improbable wave.
We see old men in service caps,
Tossing wreaths into
bright Hawaiian waters.
They weep
as old wounds
again bleed.
They gaze into the sad eyes
Of buddies who
didn’t make it.
And we think of our own losses,
Korea and Vietnam,
torrents of blood
flowing through fertile
Asian valleys,
and the obscenity of 9-11,
insurgency raping
Iraq and
Afghanistan,
and we ask, “When will it end? ”
Nodding slowly,
we know.
poem by Steven Federle
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Feelings on Watching the Moon
Time hard year famine life land empty
Brothers live abroad each east west
Fields gardens few fall shield spear after
Bone flesh flow apart road road on
Hang shadow separate like 10,000 li goose
Leave root apart rise 9 autumn dishevelled
Together look bright moon should fall tear
One night home heart 5 place alike The times are hard: a year of famine has emptied the fields,
My brothers live abroad- scattered west and east.
Now fields and gardens are scarcely seen after the fighting,
Family members wander, scattered on the road.
Attached to shadows, like geese ten thousand li apart,
Or roots uplifted into September's autumn air.
We look together at the bright moon, and then the tears should fall,
This night, our wish for home can make five places one.