image from flickr.com
Sentlnels
“Loneliness is the poverty of the self; solitude is the
richness of self.”--Mary Sarton.
As a kid, I remember my mother saying,”Butch, I am
amazed at how much time you spend alone without,
apparently, being lonely. I would go to my room and
read, play games, sketch, study and daydream.
Ironically, it was never really a punishment for me to
be told to go to my room.
When I am alone--strolling, hiking, meditating, writing,
or using my camera, I’m in the zone, laser-focused;
feeling joyful, blissful and creative. When I’m single,
without a life partner, far from family and friends--
then in the midst of crowds, loneliness stabs my
chest like a heart attack, like a ghoulish demon
with depression as its companion, and it spreads
through my body like a virulent infection from a
wound.
The converse, of course, is that when I share
nature, travel or art with a loved one, I feel very
fulfilled, bursting with happiness, completed. I
no longer can enjoy a play, a film, or a sunset
without someone else in attendance. I believe
that solitude is essential for creative growth,
but it is fellowship that provides substantiation
and validation.
Eagles mate for life,
but as sentinel hunters,
they value solitude.
Glenn Buttkus
Posted over at dVerse Poets Pub
10 comments:
I don't know if everyone is like us, Glenn, but I certainly agree and feel you captured perfectly the double edged nature of solitude.
Glenn you know yourself well in how you write your poem.
It was never a punishment for me to go to my room, either.
I like this Glenn, or should I say Butch. :-) The truth vibrates at its core. And brother, I know from whence you cometh. I love being alone. Do my best creative work alone, both art and writing. In fact when in the zone of creativity, I MUST be alone. I do so understand that. But, like you, there is no joy without sharing it. Your haiku was spot on in context.
I love all the things you reveal about yourself bit by bit in your poetry, Glenn, for example that your mother called you Butch! Mothers always worry about the children being lonely when they spend time alone, daydreaming and quietly getting on with the things they love. I think they forget that children do most of their socialising at school, either enforced or of their own volition. You’ve captured the difference between enjoyable solitude and miserable loneliness well in the ‘ghoulish demon with depression as its companion’, as well as the joy of sharing, and the haiku expresses this beautifully.
It's a fine balance, isn't it? We withdraw to create but need the coming back together to celebrate. So succinctly expressed. Love the haiku.
so lovely to find that person who also wants to share time with you
I agree, it's a natural reflex to tell someone to come and look at the sunset, the deer or whatever. Sharing happiness increases it.
Oh I fully agree with it all... maybe I can even feel that a stab of loneliness is needed to make me seek either the focused solitude or company of others...
Maybe we need a little bit of them all and know how to find them (and the way out)
Oh, I do like that haiku at the end. There is wisdom in your words. I saw an eagle recently soaring over the river.
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