I am a firm believer that besides the different genres and classic masters, every would-be writer should keep as well a book of poetry beside the couch. For learning imagery, brevity, rhythm, there is nothing that matches the lines of a poem to create a mindset that brings these elements into our writing.
I do not intend to start Neruda at page one and follow in a linear fashion, but rather flip the book open to see what catches my soul.
Time
is divided
into two rivers:
one
flows backward, devouring
life already lived;
the other
moves forward with you
exposing
your life.
For a single second
they may be joined.
Now.
This is that moment,
the drop of an instant
that washes away the past.
(Ode to the Past, p. 115)
is divided
into two rivers:
one
flows backward, devouring
life already lived;
the other
moves forward with you
exposing
your life.
For a single second
they may be joined.
Now.
This is that moment,
the drop of an instant
that washes away the past.
(Ode to the Past, p. 115)
Wow.
The Lost Children: A Charity Anthology
A great tribute to the elusive, yet all-pervasive present.
If you really like Neruda, check out Red Poppy at http://www.redpoppy.net. It’s a non-profit set up to create a documentary about Neruda, publish his biography, and translate his works into English.