Love
Fragile
as a spider's web
Hanging
in space
Between
tall grasses,
It
is torn again and again.
A
passing dog
Or
simply the wind can do it.
Several
times a day
I
gather myself together
And
spin it again.
Spiders
are patient weavers.
They
never give up.
And
who knows
What
keeps them at it?
Hunger,
no doubt,
And
hope.
May
Sarton
fr.
Halfway To Silence
“Several
times a day/I gather myself together/And spin it again.” The
spiderweb as a metaphor for the fragility of love is a clear example
of the practical usefulness of poetry. To have this metaphor show a web as both a work of beauty and a necessity; an expression of
hunger and hope, and how it requires daily, patient attention
and repair, clearly shows me what love is - not a falling into,
like an inevitable accident, or a chemistry, like an inevitable
combustion, or a fever, like an inavoidable illness, but a patient,
moment by moment paying attention. An acceptance of damage, injury,
and luck (bad and good). A commitment to starting over and over, to
beginning anew - every day.
Patience, that's love. Not giving up, that's love.
The
web seems fragile, but as you no doubt remember, spider silk is
stronger than steel.
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