To Finally Be Alive | Teen Ink

To Finally Be Alive

August 9, 2011
By Thesilentraven PLATINUM, Mableton, Georgia
Thesilentraven PLATINUM, Mableton, Georgia
40 articles 2 photos 1632 comments

Favorite Quote:
"il piu nell' uno," (according to Emerson, an Italian expression for beauty)

"Unable are the loved to die, for love is immortality" ~Emily Dickinson

"The deeper that sorrow carves into your being, the more joy you can contain"
~Kahlil Gibran


Such solemn voices, like hooded monks in the pouring rain
Obscure birdlike forms gliding through the semi-darkness
A messenger makes his way across the sweeping plains
Bringing word of the void which rattles in his satchel
The prophet’s bookkeeper will open up any volume for you
But you must be ready to be consumed by the words
Or to drown on the pages

They are very lovely faces, the golden color of memory
When it is warm and whole, a puddle of honey and water
Friends that have moved on to a land of illumination
Leaving behind one white-haired boy to write their memoirs
And to continue to love their bright-eyed ghosts
Which flit in and out of the pulsating lamplight
And inhabit his quiet heart

Did you wonder why there was no sparrow on the third day?
No swift, brown dab on the rich, blue sky to circle overhead?
I am so sorry, darling, but you had to know that kind of loneliness
To realize that you are never truly alone
And I came back on the day when you were resurrected, remember?
I was flying far above the stooping figures of your flustered rescuers
I always return for you

A pair of eventide lovers, hand-in-glowing-hand
Ambling wordlessly along the edge of the dogwood forest
Worry stones resting, unneeded, in their pockets
Engraved with the outlines of a blue dove and a red chickadee
Catching falling petals between their gentle fingers
Knowing the secret of recovery and saved by the sensation
Of finally being alive


The author's comments:
If you have a cat, then I like you very much already. Pass the little black teacup, will you? And then, we'll call it a glorious day.

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This article has 19 comments.


leafy said...
on Mar. 3 2012 at 9:15 am
leafy, City, Other
0 articles 0 photos 682 comments

Favorite Quote:
Gil: I would like you to read my novel and get your opinion. 
Ernest Hemingway: I hate it. 
Gil: You haven't even read it yet. 
Ernest Hemingway: If it's bad, I'll hate it. If it's good, then I'll be envious and hate it even more. You don't want the opinion of another writer. 

It I interesting how the last poem I read of yours was "Subtle Death," and this one is "To Finally Be Alive." What a nice foil :).

leafy said...
on Mar. 3 2012 at 9:14 am
leafy, City, Other
0 articles 0 photos 682 comments

Favorite Quote:
Gil: I would like you to read my novel and get your opinion. 
Ernest Hemingway: I hate it. 
Gil: You haven't even read it yet. 
Ernest Hemingway: If it's bad, I'll hate it. If it's good, then I'll be envious and hate it even more. You don't want the opinion of another writer. 

I am dreadfully sorry, however, as I have no tea- I've never really enjoyed that drink much, and I quite prefer apple cider much better. I do have a cat though, two in fact! One is black with a white spot while the other is white with a black spot. Their names, of course, are Yin and Yang. I'd love to introduce them to you, but I'm afraid it might be a tad too dangerous for a feathered friend like you - they've caught many a bird in the past, and would love to do it again, if given the chance.

leafy said...
on Mar. 3 2012 at 9:12 am
leafy, City, Other
0 articles 0 photos 682 comments

Favorite Quote:
Gil: I would like you to read my novel and get your opinion. 
Ernest Hemingway: I hate it. 
Gil: You haven't even read it yet. 
Ernest Hemingway: If it's bad, I'll hate it. If it's good, then I'll be envious and hate it even more. You don't want the opinion of another writer. 

Ahh!- what a glorious way to start your morning: songbirds chirping happily outside, a soft blanket warming your toes, and your mouth munching on a pumpkin muffin white your eyes chew on the words of your favorite raven. What a lovely, what a powerful, poem - your words have never let me down.

on Jan. 21 2012 at 1:18 pm
My feathered friend, I fell into and out of love, in the romantic sense. But in the larger sense, I love simply to love, for that is what we're instructed to do.

on Dec. 16 2011 at 4:03 pm
RedFeather GOLD, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
12 articles 0 photos 155 comments

Favorite Quote:
Prose is like walking but poetry is like dancing.
—Paul Valery, poet (1871 - 1945)

Beautiful work as always, Raven. But what's this? More mention of love - that seems to be mentioned in most of your poems. Tells us, are you in love, Raven, or are you just in love with the idea of love?

Btw, I absolutely agree with you. It's very hard to attempt to love all humanity. I just love my family and friends and give respect to all the others. Cats are much simpler to love than people. I've only met one cat that I didn't like, though I liked him plenty enough until he bit me. Sadly, I have never had the wonderful opportunity to own a cat, but I wish that I did very much.


on Aug. 16 2011 at 10:18 pm
IamtheshyStargirl PLATINUM, Lothlorien, Utah
44 articles 16 photos 2206 comments

Favorite Quote:
Boredom instigates extreme creativity.
~Amoniel

"Bowing gratefully to all of my subjects, 'thank you. Thank you. The pleasure is mine." Nah, I'm just kidding. We're all kings together.'"
~Thesilentraven

Most definitely :)

on Aug. 16 2011 at 3:49 pm
Thesilentraven PLATINUM, Mableton, Georgia
40 articles 2 photos 1632 comments

Favorite Quote:
"il piu nell' uno," (according to Emerson, an Italian expression for beauty)

"Unable are the loved to die, for love is immortality" ~Emily Dickinson

"The deeper that sorrow carves into your being, the more joy you can contain"
~Kahlil Gibran

That sounds like a good use for it.

I'll have to read something of Orson Scott Card some time, without a doubt.


on Aug. 15 2011 at 8:24 pm
IamtheshyStargirl PLATINUM, Lothlorien, Utah
44 articles 16 photos 2206 comments

Favorite Quote:
Boredom instigates extreme creativity.
~Amoniel

"Bowing gratefully to all of my subjects, 'thank you. Thank you. The pleasure is mine." Nah, I'm just kidding. We're all kings together.'"
~Thesilentraven

Alvin Maker is the lead character from "The Tales of Alvin Maker" by Orson Scott Card. I think it was the first Orson Scott Card book/series I had ever read. It inspired me in many ways. 

on Aug. 15 2011 at 8:22 pm
IamtheshyStargirl PLATINUM, Lothlorien, Utah
44 articles 16 photos 2206 comments

Favorite Quote:
Boredom instigates extreme creativity.
~Amoniel

"Bowing gratefully to all of my subjects, 'thank you. Thank you. The pleasure is mine." Nah, I'm just kidding. We're all kings together.'"
~Thesilentraven

Haha, oh dear... I find it easier to love all of humanity L: 

Maybe it can be about a certain lost necklace that I found one day at the health food store and just fell in love with it's raw beauty... I still hope that it will come back to me.


on Aug. 15 2011 at 4:44 pm
savetheplanet PLATINUM, Anaheim, California
45 articles 9 photos 564 comments

Favorite Quote:
It is better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all.

You should have seen him beg for my turkey sandwhich.  It was so CUTE!  I was sitting down and there was a little stool in front of me.  He comes, sits on the stool, puts his front paws on my knees and just stares at me with these BIG eyes.  Noses my sandwhich and says, PLEEAASSSEE! Pretty, pretty please?  And I gave in to his infinite cuteness and ended up feeding half my sandwhich to him.  :D

on Aug. 15 2011 at 3:58 pm
Thesilentraven PLATINUM, Mableton, Georgia
40 articles 2 photos 1632 comments

Favorite Quote:
"il piu nell' uno," (according to Emerson, an Italian expression for beauty)

"Unable are the loved to die, for love is immortality" ~Emily Dickinson

"The deeper that sorrow carves into your being, the more joy you can contain"
~Kahlil Gibran

Most decent people make it their goal to love all of humanity, despite the large number of people who it is their inclination to despise. I tried, but have been finding it too difficult; so I resolved to love all cats, instead (much easier). Crystalized sundrops, hmmm, you should certainly incorporate that into a poem. I wonder, who or what is Alvin Maker?

Liz: ha, I like that. Cats can get quite grumpy, but I love it when they try to compensate. :)


on Aug. 15 2011 at 1:27 pm
IamtheshyStargirl PLATINUM, Lothlorien, Utah
44 articles 16 photos 2206 comments

Favorite Quote:
Boredom instigates extreme creativity.
~Amoniel

"Bowing gratefully to all of my subjects, 'thank you. Thank you. The pleasure is mine." Nah, I'm just kidding. We're all kings together.'"
~Thesilentraven

I had a series of unfortunate cat events when I was little. 

on Aug. 15 2011 at 12:49 pm
savetheplanet PLATINUM, Anaheim, California
45 articles 9 photos 564 comments

Favorite Quote:
It is better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all.

Hmm, I have actually never met a cat who I didn't like.  True one cat seems to have a grumpy disposition but he always apologizes later. :D

on Aug. 15 2011 at 11:50 am
IamtheshyStargirl PLATINUM, Lothlorien, Utah
44 articles 16 photos 2206 comments

Favorite Quote:
Boredom instigates extreme creativity.
~Amoniel

"Bowing gratefully to all of my subjects, 'thank you. Thank you. The pleasure is mine." Nah, I'm just kidding. We're all kings together.'"
~Thesilentraven

I am not exactly a lover of cats as a species, but I've found that certain individuals are lovely. Among them, Tigger and Cactus, one cat belongs to a friend, and I took care of him for a week. The other is mine. Though I'm not sure if I get to keep him.

Reminds a person of Wonderland, The Book Thief, and crystalized sundrops. Expertly drawn together, whenever I read your poetry, I imagine long fingered hands intricately drawing many colored threads together. Very much like the weavers in Alvin Maker who weave to discover the life cloth. 


on Aug. 14 2011 at 7:14 pm
Thesilentraven PLATINUM, Mableton, Georgia
40 articles 2 photos 1632 comments

Favorite Quote:
"il piu nell' uno," (according to Emerson, an Italian expression for beauty)

"Unable are the loved to die, for love is immortality" ~Emily Dickinson

"The deeper that sorrow carves into your being, the more joy you can contain"
~Kahlil Gibran

Oh dear, I certainly hope he recovers quickly and easily.

Aderes47 GOLD said...
on Aug. 14 2011 at 5:07 pm
Aderes47 GOLD, Cambridge, Massachusetts
11 articles 0 photos 897 comments

Favorite Quote:
You will find as you look back upon your life that the moments when you have truly lived are the moments when you have done things in the spirit of love.
Henry Drummond

Mr.Piggle-Wiggle cannot come to tea today because he is sick with a stomachache but I will tell him! :)

on Aug. 14 2011 at 3:13 pm
Thesilentraven PLATINUM, Mableton, Georgia
40 articles 2 photos 1632 comments

Favorite Quote:
"il piu nell' uno," (according to Emerson, an Italian expression for beauty)

"Unable are the loved to die, for love is immortality" ~Emily Dickinson

"The deeper that sorrow carves into your being, the more joy you can contain"
~Kahlil Gibran

Thank you both very much; you are too kind!

To Aderes, oh wonderful! Tell Mr. Piggle-Wiggle that Raven says hello and also that he's invited to come and have tea with me any time he likes.

To Liz/Bard, that is just as well. :)


on Aug. 14 2011 at 1:31 pm
savetheplanet PLATINUM, Anaheim, California
45 articles 9 photos 564 comments

Favorite Quote:
It is better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all.

I like the beautiful imagery and language.  Keep it up!  And no, I don't have a cat but I love my friend's cats very much.

Aderes47 GOLD said...
on Aug. 14 2011 at 1:00 pm
Aderes47 GOLD, Cambridge, Massachusetts
11 articles 0 photos 897 comments

Favorite Quote:
You will find as you look back upon your life that the moments when you have truly lived are the moments when you have done things in the spirit of love.
Henry Drummond

This is a very beautiful poem. Reminds me of The Book Thief and tons of other beautiful things. 

It's also exquisite, unique, one of a kind. :) 

By the way, I have a cat, he's orange and his name is Mr.Piggle-Wiggle. :)