Hmm it’s my meager money that keeps me out of chains and my heart beating, so I think I’ll hang onto it. I don’t consider my desire for financial security to be pathetic, it’s essential.
I probably missed the point, but this poem rubs me the wrong way. It got me thinking though, so thanks for posting.
And thanks for the comment! Honestly, while I see the religious connotations, that wasn't even the first place my mind went. i.e. it seems much more "zen" than Judeo-Christian, although I suppose in fairness it's both.
Anyway, it seems to be (1) something mostly just to ponder, rather than a specific rule that someone must take, and therefore (2) not something intended for everyone, e.g. if you have a medical need that will cost money, then why commit suicide by giving away that treatment?
But... as with any art, I suppose it means whatever the reader pulls from it.
I do want to add that we are getting sidetracked with the "money" part, as should be expected, but that's nowhere close to what this poem seems to be about overall, to me at least. It also mentions telling someone you love them (hehe, not necessarily with a gift of all of your money:-), and overall screams to me of bravery. Especially that last stanza - "nothing more pathetic than caution", which it goes on to specifically mention that while perhaps not always, definitely there seems to be times when it needs to be discarded, not to fill someone else's pockets or even stomaches, but for our own sakes, in that moment.
Start with Luke 21 ...
He also saw a poor widow put in two very small copper coins. “Truly I tell you,” he said, “this poor widow has put in more than all the others.
Sounds... nice, poor people should give, right? Then read just before the unfortunate? chapter break at the end of Luke 20
“Beware of the teachers of the law. They like to walk around in flowing robes and love to be greeted with respect in the marketplaces and have the most important seats in the synagogues and the places of honor at banquets. They devour widows’ houses and for a show make lengthy prayers. These men will be punished most severely.”
Mary Oliver is my favorite poet. Go check her stuff out if you haven’t. So beautiful.
Her essays are also superb.
I’ll have to check those out! I just have a poem of anthology of hers.
