Mornings Robinson Jeffers would work words into astounding poems, and in the afternoon granite rocks into his Tor House and Hawk Tower. I have always aspired to and admired what he did: observe eveyrthing, and using what he found, make things that endure


The Stone-Cutter

There where the river narrows
It rushes against granite cliffs
Of marbled whorls and striated
Streaks in clefts and ridges
Chiseled by light and wind;
Ancient monuments to the water
They anchor, and eons of fire
In which they were cast and then
Cast up, cold embers the sun
Now flares into flames again;
The elemental cornerstones
On which everything depends.

I am a stone-cutter who has
The vision but not the gift
To reveal what it is he sees,
Release what is so long hidden;
Awaken the old gods who sleep
Deep in these stones, bring them
Into our conscious need of them
To restore our forgotten faith
In some enduring steadfastness:
The resolute radiance of light
On the water and stones rising
Up in the still-astonished air.




Poetry by countryfog
Read 607 times
Written on 2010-11-19 at 13:54

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It never occurred to me until now to see Frost as an East coast Jeffers. Frost with his fondness for stone walls, but not so hot on building them himself, I suspect. Jeffers using those sinewy, ropey arms of his to chisel and fit. Both granite worlds, both story-tellers. Both with their dark side, though no one believes Frost was dark.

I guess it isn't about granite.

This poem is rock solid. (sorry).

But, really, the story telling has similarities. The characters that seem less than whole, the funny goings-on that happen in small towns and hidden backwaters. The intricacies and secrets. The intimacies of lives exposed. Raw human nature. Raw nature. I give Jeffers the nod for sustaining those images, for living the life.
2010-11-20


John Ashleigh The PoetBay support member heart!
To create something out of nothing - to make to endure. To observe. -- I really like this poem, and I think you deserve an applause. Thankyou for sharing!

Regards,
John.
2010-11-19


Lawrence Beck The PoetBay support member heart!
I'm very pleased to be the first one to comment on this poem. I know that I won't be the last. Wow! It's a tour de force, Fog.
2010-11-19