Editor’s note: As a bestselling author and frequent Meridian contributor, most of us are familiar with Richard Eyre’s prose, but he is less well-known as a poet. We have asked him to share a poem each Monday morning for the remainder of this year as a form of weekly contemplation, along with a preface paragraph about its context and about what motivated him to write it. To read the five earlier poems in this series click here, here, here, here, and here.
Poet’s context: My efforts at poetry began with some attempted love-poems during my courtship with Linda. In the 50+ years since then, I hope my poetic prowess has grown a fraction as much as my love for her. Today, I thought I would be personal enough to share a poem I wrote on our fifty-first anniversary where I was trying to explain the incredible but illusive concept of “oneness.” It was our first anniversary apart as Linda had gone to the birthday party of the daughter who was born exactly a year after our wedding.
First One Solo
After fifty anniversary celebrations with you
This one without
You there, celebrating with our the 50-year-old
Who was our first anniversary present,
And me, here at the lake, alone but full,
Thinking about the transitions from me to we:
Independence becomes Interdependence
Selfish becomes Selfless
Lust becomes Love
Ego becomes Empathy
Ambition becomes Awareness
Power becomes Perspective
Wealth becomes Wonder
Manipulation becomes Magnanimity
Searching becomes Service
Fate becomes Flow
Loneliness becomes Loveliness
Jeopardy becomes Joy
And, in sum,
Control becomes Serendipity
Ownership becomes Stewardship
Long live marriage, long live oneness
