James Wright isn’t my favorite poet, but every once in a while I read one of his pieces and it really strikes a chord in me. The Jewel is one such poem. Here it is…

The Jewel
James Wright

There is this cave
In the air behind my body
That nobody is going to touch:
A cloister, a silence
Closing around a blossom of fire.
When I stand upright in the wind,
My bones turn to dark emeralds.

7 Comments

  • Sounds good. 🙂

    Jesse Dean

  • *stares for a while…*

    um… er…

    Mine’s better!
    *flees*

  • *confused*
    I knew I should have had a V8!!!

  • And you think YOU’RE confused!

    🙂
    I just couldn’t think of a response to that poem. So… I fell back on what I know. Mine!

    And my inner-me thinks… Mine’s better!

    😉

  • Oh… I see… (he says with a confused smile on his face). 😉

    Anyway… I love the mental imagery conjured up by that poem. I’ll post another when I get a chance…

    Here’s a great quote of Goethe…
    “One ought, every day at least, to hear a little song, read a good poem, see a fine picture, and if it were possible, to speak a few reasonable words.”

    That was the inspiration for me posting the poem. 🙂

    –sam

  • I think that’s very sound and good advice. 🙂

  • See the Goethe quote below for the reason why I posted… 🙂