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Like They Say

Underneath the tree on some
soft grass I sat, I

watched two happy
woodpeckers be dis-

turbed by my presence. And
why not, I thought to

myself, why
not.

-Robert Creeley

The Answer

Then what is the answer?- Not to be deluded by dreams.
To know that great civilizations have broken down into violence,
------and their tyrants come, many times before.
When open violence appears, to avoid it with honor or choose
------the least ugly faction; these evils are essential.
To keep one's own integrity, be merciful and uncorrupted
------and not wish for evil; and not be duped
By dreams of universal justice or happiness. These dreams will
------not be fulfilled.
To know this, and know that however ugly the parts appear
------the whole remains beautiful. A severed hand
Is an ugly thing and man dissevered from the earth and stars
------and his history... for contemplation or in fact...
Often appears atrociously ugly. Integrity is wholeness,
------the greatest beauty is
Organic wholeness, the wholeness of life and things, the divine beauty
------of the universe. Love that, not man
Apart from that, or else you will share man's pitiful confusions,
------or drown in despair when his days darken.

-Robinson Jeffers, 1935