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| STEVE RINGMAN / THE SEATTLE TIMES |
Whenever I see Mt. Rainier, I'm always reminded of Richard Kenney's "Shall I Compare Thee To Appearances," a poem I studied in my capstone poetry course. Better yet, Kenney is a poet and English professor here at the UW! I'd love to read more of his work, when I get the chance.
This poem is still one of my absolute favorites.
Shall I Compare Thee To Appearances
I check my watch. 8:10. You paint an eye, blinking
In the dubious glass held up to the Christmas party,
Turning back the clock. You are very pretty,
But also beautiful; but what I'm thinking
Is: Rainier. Invisible all month behind a veiling
Weather one wouldn't have thought could cloak a moth-
Wing, well, tonight that ancient volcano, big as the mother
Of all mother ships, shows its alien
Glacier to the moon. It looks close enough to lick.
And how much worse than a lamppost, that. And all along,
Who cared a fig for anything but the long
And short and heavy and high and wide? Here's to the relic
Of the what else, wet on the nerve, and what compares?
Numbers?
Whaaut? You're in love with Mt. Rainier, too? Oh gosh, even more of a kindred spirit!
ReplyDeleteI'm nearly crying right now 1. because you used some of the EXACT language I've used to describe beloved Rainier and 2. that poem! Oh my goodness. He captured it beautifully!
Seeing Rainier is my definition of "sublime." Beautiful yet terrifying--it's not a "tame" mountain.
Beginning freshman year, I was afraid of floundering and the Lord gave me Rainier and this verse as a promise:
" I look up to the mountains; does my strength come from mountains?
No, my strength comes from God,
who made heaven, and earth, AND mountains. " (ps. 121, the Message)
Its been such an incredible reminder of his goodness and care. And even if clouds hide it--14,000 feet of rock haven't disappeared. The Mountain still stands. Ah! Thank you for posting this... the encouragement I needed.
Just two posts I've done on Rainier I thought you might enjoy:
http://samarasthoughts.blogspot.com/2009/03/i-lift-up-my-eyes-to-hills.html
and
http://samarasthoughts.blogspot.com/2009/07/rainier-vista.html