“Let us celebrate the occasion with wine and sweet words.”— Plautus
SOURCE |
“People of our time are losing
the power of celebration. Instead of celebrating we seek to be amused or
entertained. Celebration is an active state, an act of expressing
reverence or appreciation. To be entertained is a passive state--it is to
receive pleasure afforded by an amusing act or a spectacle. . . . Celebration
is a confrontation, giving attention to the transcendent meaning of one's
actions.” — Abraham Joshua Heschel
Midweek
Motif ~ Celebration
Celebrations compel all to look forward to it, to have fun,
to enjoy, to de-stress.
There’s no dearth of celebrations in this world. From the
tiniest particle to the cosmos is in a mood of celebration.
For people everywhere there are funny, bizarre, interesting,
solemn, traditional, religious celebrations.
Celebrations are part of our lives bestowing a sense of
belonging, recognizing, strengthening and honoring relationships & also adding
a purpose to life.
Life itself can be celebrated too, in a breath of
gratitude.
Now it’s time for Celebration. It’s your choice how you connect
your poems to it.
Sunbeam
by Anna Akhmatova
I pray to the sunbeam from the window-
It is pale, thin, straight.
Since morning I have been silent,
And my heart - is split.
The copper on my washstand
Has turned green,
But the sunbeam plays on it
So charmingly.
How innocent it is, and simple,
In the evening calm,
But to me in this deserted temple
It’s like a golden celebration,
And a consolation.
I Love You Sweetheart
by Thomas Lux
A
man risked his life to write the words.
A
man hung upside down (an idiot friend
holding
his legs?) with spray paint
to
write the words on a girder fifty feet above
a
highway.
And his beloved,
And his beloved,
the
next morning driving to work.
.
.
?
.
.
?
His
words are not (meant to be) so unique.
Does
she recognize his handwriting?
Did
he hint to her at her doorstep the night before
of
"something special, darling, tomorrow"?
And
did he call her at work
expecting
her to faint with delight
at
his celebration of her, his passion, his risk?
She
will know I love her now,
the
world will know my love for her!
A
man risked his life to write the world.
Love
is like this at the bone, we hope, love
is
like this, Sweatheart, all sore and dumb
and
dangerous, ignited, blessed--always,
regardless,
no exceptions,
always
in blazing matters like these: blessed.
When The New Year
by Rg Gregory
when
the new year
came
out of nowhere
and
peeped into rooms
it
was so flattered to find
all
the tv's drinking its health
praising
its innocent appearance
it
responded with its warm
dark
smile and went round
filling
people's dry hearts
with
joy
over
the coming weeks though
those
same tv's attacked it
criticising
its puerile style
its
sickly contemptible face
one
year is the same as another
(they
said) for the doom
time
belabours us with
it
took the year all
its
length to discover
that
the celebration
so
welcoming its birth
just
happened to be
where
the beer was
Please share your
new poem using Mr. Linky below and visit others in the spirit of the community—
Susan’s Midweek
Motif on 3/01/2018 will be ~ Doorway(s)
Thanks for this appropriate seasonal prompt, Sumana!
ReplyDeleteThat first quote is spot on. There is so much to celebrate in life but we have made it big events that titillate our senses. So quickly forgotten.
ReplyDeleteHappy Wednesday everyone :)
ReplyDeleteHope everyone is having a good week. Couldn't think of a title, but it's posted.
ReplyDeleteSumana, I think this prompt is the most beautiful/powerful midweek motif EVER! You enter the spirit of celebration and draw me in. I thank you heartily for reminding me that I celebrate daily, but don't pause to note it. I paused to notice in this poem.
ReplyDeleteA very interesting prompt, Sumana. We get so caught up in getting better n better that we forget to honor the life we have right now.
ReplyDeleteMay the year be full of celebration and the peace for everyone!
Love this prompt especially appropriate for the Festive Season.
ReplyDeleteDear Sumana! Thank you for such a beautiful and fitting prompt to close the year from my part. I couldn't agree more with Panchali, we get so caught up...
ReplyDeleteAnd to all fellow poets here, thank you for the inspiration and support. See you next year!
We are in celebratory days, luvving this prompt
ReplyDeleteHappy mid-week to all
much love...
A wonderful reminder to celebrate what is. It could all so swiftly be gone....thank you, Sumana. Turned out I was happy to remember all there is to celebrate. Starting with my granddogs, LOL.
ReplyDeleteIn spite of tragic events earlier this week, I find I can still celebrate. It is truly a season of joy, with all the small beauties joing into one. I shall be back later to read and comment!
ReplyDeleteWhat a wonderful post, Sumana! I love all of your inclusions. Indeed I agree with Heschel's words - "people of our time are losing the power of celebration." I hadn't thought about this before, but I do think it is true. We do need to take time to think of what there is to celebrate!
ReplyDeleteEvening, Poets! Thank you, Sumana! Celebration is an idea I too often take for granted. Having said that, I took a different slant on it!
ReplyDeleteI love taking part in anything that makes good people feel happy about being. So, let's celebrate away!
ReplyDeleteThank you Mary I just checked the Blogroll.Long Live PU and Wish you All a very Happy New Year May we all Celebrate with joy and happiness and offer our gratitude...think of new poems too Best wishes prayers and lots of love
ReplyDelete