In certain ways writing is a form of prayer.
Denise LevertovRead
I thought I was growing wings— it was a cocoon. I thought, now is the time to step into the fire— it was deep water. Eschatology is a word I learned as a child: the study of Last Things; facing my mirror—no longer young, the news—always of death, the dogs—rising from sleep and clamoring and howling, howling.... ("Seeing For a Moment")
Interpretation
What this quote means
This quote reflects on the misconceptions of growth and transformation, emphasizing the struggles of confronting deeper realities.
Denise Levertov's quote delves into the theme of personal transformation, highlighting how what we perceive as progress can often mask deeper challenges. The imagery of wings and fire contrasted with a cocoon and deep water suggests that moments of perceived growth may actually lead us into complex, even perilous situations. Levertov's self-reflection on aging and the inevitability of death further underscores a philosophical contemplation of life’s impermanence and the stark realities we must face.
Themes
GrowthTransformationRealityPhilosophyLifeAging
In practice
Example use cases
In a discussion about personal development, one might quote Levertov to illustrate the complexities of change.
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All quotes →Wear scarlet! Tear the green lemons off the tree! I don't want to forget who I am, what has burned in me, and hang limp and clean, an empty dress -
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Rain-diamonds, this winter morning, embellish the tangle of unpruned pear-tree twigs; each solitaire, placed, it appears, with considered judgement, bears the light beneath the rifted clouds - the invisible shared out in endless abundance.
Denise LevertovRead
An absolute_x000D_ patience._x000D_ Trees stand_x000D_ up to their knees in_x000D_ fog. The fog_x000D_ slowly flows_x000D_ uphill._x000D_ White_x000D_ cobwebs, the grass _x000D_ leaning where deer _x000D_ have looked for apples._x000D_ The woods_x000D_ from brook to where_x000D_ the top of the hill looks_x000D_ over the fog, send up_x000D_ not one bird._x000D_ So absolute, it is_x000D_ no other than_x000D_ happiness itself, a breathing_x000D_ too quiet to hear.
Denise LevertovRead
Peace as a positive condition of society, not merely as an interim between wars, is something so unknown that it casts no images on the mind's screen.
Denise LevertovRead
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