"Outwitted" by Edwin Markham

"When my brothers try to draw a circle to exclude me, I shall draw a larger circle to include them." So said transgender civil rights activist Pauli Murray. That quotation from Murray reminded me of the inspirational poem below.


OUTWITTED
by Edwin Markham

He drew a circle that shut me out --
Heretic, rebel, a thing to flout.
But Love and I had the wit to win:
We drew a circle that took him in!

Edwin Markham

To read about him, click here.

"The Final Say: Saint Paul"

THE FINAL SAY: SAINT PAUL

by Monty Gilmer

There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus. And if ye be Christ's, then are ye Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise.

     SAINT PAUL

     to the Galatians (in the Bible: Galatians 3:28-29, King James Version)

He knew that each fish

was given paradise

in its slimy skin,

in its little gasping kiss of the sea.

     ANNE SEXTON

     From "The Saints Come Marching In"

     in The Awful Rowing Toward God (1975)

"Love the Light-Giver" by Michelangelo

LOVE THE LIGHT-GIVER
by Michelangelo Buonarroti

To Tommaso De' Cavalieri

Veggio co' bei vostri occhi.

With your fair eyes a charming light I see,
    For which my own blind eyes would peer in vain;
    Stayed by your feet, the burden I sustain
    Which my lame feet find all too strong for me;
Wingless upon your pinions forth I fly;
    Heavenward your spirit stirreth me to strain;
    E'en as you will, I blush and blanch again,
    Freeze in the sun, burn 'neath a frosty sky.
Your will includes and is the lord of mine;
    Life to my thoughts within your heart is given;
    My words begin to breathe upon your breath:
Like to the moon am I, that cannot shine
    Alone; for lo! our eyes see nought in heaven
    Save what the living sun illumineth.


This poem is in the public domain. "Love the Light-Giver" was published in The Sonnets of Michael Angelo Buonarroti (T. B. Mosher, 1897), translated by John Addington Symonds.

Michelangelo (1475-1564)

Michelangelo Buonarroti was born on March 6, 1475, in Caprese, Italy. One of the most famous artists of the Italian Renaissance, he wrote close to 75 finished sonnets and about 95 madrigals, which were later compiled into translated collections. He died on February 18, 1564, in Rome, Italy.

"The Final Say: Spread No Rumors"

THE FINAL SAY: SPREAD NO RUMORS

by Monty Gilmer

I hate to spread rumors, but what else can one do with them?

     AMANDA LEAR

     French singer, quoted in the Los Angeles Times

Lord, who may enter your Temple?

Who may worship on Zion, your sacred hill?

Those who obey God in everything

   and always do what is right,

whose words are true and sincere,

   and who do not slander others.

They do no wrong to their friends

   nor spread rumors about their neighbors.

     DAVID

     in the Bible: Psalm 15:1-3 (Good News Translation)

"Sympathy" by Paul Laurence Dunbar

Have you ever yearned to be free from cares, duties, and social restrictions and yet could not follow the restless urging of your heart? If you have, perhaps you too know "what the caged bird feels."


SYMPATHY
by Paul Laurence Dunbar

I know what the caged bird feels, alas!
   When the sun is bright on the upward slopes;
When the wind stirs soft through the springing grass;
And the river flows like a stream of glass;
   When the first bird sings and the first bud opes,
And the faint perfume from its chalice steals --
I know what the caged bird feels!

I know why the caged bird beats his wing
   Till its blood is red on the cruel bars;
For he must fly back to his perch and cling
When he fain would be on the bough a-swing;
   And a pain still throbs in the old, old scars
And they pulse again with a keener sting --
I know why he beats his wing!

I know why the caged bird sings, ah me,
   When his wing is bruised and his bosom sore, --
When he beats his bars and he would be free;
It is not a carol of joy or glee,
   But a prayer that he sends from his heart's deep core,
But a plea, that upward to Heaven he flings --
I know why the caged bird sings!

Paul Laurence Dunbar (1872-1906)

Dunbar gained international renown and popularized black literature by lecturing and reading his poetry. He published prolifically: seven volumes of verse (over 400 poems), four novels; four collections of short stories; dozens of articles in magazines; song lyrics, musical plays and sketches.

     --from African-American Poetry: An Anthology, 1773-1927, edited by Joan R. Sherman (Dover

       Publications, Inc., 1997)

To read more about Paul Laurence Dunbar, click here.

"Growing Apples" by Nancy Miller Gomez | Rattle: Poetry

Read the poem "Growing Apples" by Nancy Miller Gomez, and watch the video that accompanies it, a video of the author of that poem reciting it: https://www.rattle.com/growing-apples