I, who cannot stop thinking about God

[PrinceMyshkin]

I, who cannot stop thinking about God,
in whom I neither believe
nor disbelieve, step outside my house
and encounter a wind
that seems to be filled with intent.
It shudders the trees.
The leaves are like an immense flock of birds,
unnerved.
And I know
that I don’t know
as much as I need to.

[BobbyIce]

I like the image and the action. I think this is definately begging some introspection on part of the reader, perhaps even encouraging taking the agnostic stance of the narrator in his or her personal experience.

What I also find interesting is examining the possible conclusions one can come to regarding the whatever the poem is trying to express. One could simply muse that the narrator seems to find evidence for God, or perhaps some ambiguous supernatural entity, but the opposite is also possible. The poem could be cleverly asserting that the narrator led himself to his own experience by way of his minds propensity towards contemplation of God, that his intent led him to the mental response.

Either way it raises some interesting sentiments. Compact and enjoyable in my opinion.

[Delta40]

Oh well! There is enough wisdom in this poem for me to have breakfast on. What a fabulous thought provoking poet you are Prince and today I will consider the leaves as they tremble in the wind and wonder about greater things than the human race.

Always a pleasure to read you and always a lesson to be had!

[Mojtaba-Iraqi]

I like the image and the action. I think this is definately begging some introspection on part of the reader, perhaps even encouraging taking the agnostic stance of the narrator in his or her personal experience.

What I also find interesting is examining the possible conclusions one can come to regarding the whatever the poem is trying to express. One could simply muse that the narrator seems to find evidence for God, or perhaps some ambiguous supernatural entity, but the opposite is also possible. The poem could be cleverly asserting that the narrator led himself to his own experience by way of his minds propensity towards contemplation of God, that his intent led him to the mental response.

Either way it raises some interesting sentiments. Compact and enjoyable in my opinion.

very clever and interesting Prince....this one reminded me of Tennyson's "In Memoriam" .........

I enjoyed this precise criticism... Such comments bring dignity back to this forum.

[Hawkman]

I suppose it depends on what one conjectures god to be. I certainly recognise the implied "connection" with "creation" one can experience in a sublime moment though, and I feel you have expressed it artfully, but without artifice. Thanks for posting this one.

Live long and prosper - H

[Bar22do]

It is a jewel. Prince. I'm awed by the power of what's filled with intent. And especially like "leaves are like an immense flock of birds", excellent.

[Jerrybaldy]

#1.you wear the title well my friend.

[Buh4Bee]

Pleasantly thought provoking.

[white camellia]

This writing impressed us with the truthful tone of a human, and the simple presentation of Nature's subtleties.

[Haunted]

Ah, the unknowable. I guess that's why they call it Faith. I enjoyed reading this.

[blank|verse]

If the theme is a recurring one in the Prince oeuvre, perhaps it has been 'ne'er so well expressed' as in this poem. It feels this is a product of greater concentration on rhythm and the music of the lines as well as the content, which for me can sometimes dominate a Prince poem at the expense of the former.

The figurative image of the flock of birds is also notable and is especially well chosen. The British poet Katharine Towers has a poem called 'The Dread', which (she tells us in a note) is the name given to the moment of silence before a flock of arctic terns rises en masse into the air.

The tree image and the line break remind me strongly of 'Fear' by Charles Simic (http://ageofjahiliyah.wordpress.com/2007/05/24/fear-by-charles-simic/):

Fear passes from man to man
Unknowing,
As one leaf passes its shudder
To another.
I found the opening syntax makes for a rather self-aggrandizing tone; and I'm not sure about italicizing words for effect. The 'seems to be' phrase (line 5) undermines the strength of the wind, which the italics then have to compensate for. Why not simply:

and encounter a wind
filled with intent.
Still, it's a great poem and one of your finest.

[PrinceMyshkin]

Thank you, BobbyIce, Delta, Mojtabi-Iraqi, Hawkman, Bar, Jerry B, Buh4Bee, Wite Camelia, Haunted and Blank|Verse.

[qimissung]

I think I agree with Blank/Verse. This is one of your bet.

And the line

" a wind
seemingly filled with intent"

is my favorite line in it.