Feeling, Knowing, and Sight

Bethany Blair 1/23/09

There are two choices in the heart, that 

Are confusing my mind I see, 

And one is the feeling of passion, 

The other is what’s expected of me. 


And one exists within my being 

A part of my every breath, 

The other resides in a section of my mind 

But when it speaks I am deaf 


And one did give me a sense of strength 

Of self-worth for a while it lent, 

The other planned out my whole, long life 

And at my wishes it never bent. 


And one lives ever as the lyrics of my soul 

Where ardor has beat of its own – 

The other belongs with the most steady of rhythms 

Where creativity is altogether unknown. 


Between these two all decisions balance, 

Feeling, knowing, and sight – 

And once in a thousand lifetimes it is 

That each of them unite.


(This is a likeness of a poem by Tove Ditlevsen, called The Eternal Three, that was translated to English from Danish by three Allwoods. )