I heard a very good poem on the radio the other day. This was “Walking Away” by Cecil Day-Lewis.
It was about a parent watching a young child on the
sports field. The poet did not specify a
father or a mother, but I felt that it sounded like a mother to me.
The poem eavesdropped on a mother’s thoughts as she
remembered watching her little boy playing football for the first time at
school eighteen years earlier.
Her emotions churned inside her as she watched her son
interacting - tentatively – with the other boys.
The poem finished:
“Selfhood
begins with walking away.
Love
is proved in the letting go.”
I found this incredibly poignant and moving; especially
when you think of the words “proof” and “prove”. Nowadays, they are used glibly to mean: “Oh ,
yeah, that’s all right then.”
But, really they refer to something or someone placed in
the crucible and tested in the absolute heat of the fire or furnace.
In context then, we can feel the burning torment that the
mother knows she will feel as, by degrees, her son walks away.
So sad.
Now, please, go and read the poem yourself and see how
you feel about it.
This is a lovely poem. I would never have come across it having a rather hectic 'hamser in a wheel' kind of life at the moment!
ReplyDeleteSo thank you for highlighting it.
As a mother,the feeling of doing the right thing by letting go of your children is both a huge relief (knowing that you have given them the confidence to venture out on their own) and a huge wrench (your 'baby' is all grown up and no longer needs you).
I was never good at poetry so I, thoroughly, enjoyed these sentiments and your comments Jon. Thank you
Thank you for your comment, it was lovely to hear from you and that you have enjoyed "Walking Away" and my article about it. Poetry works and can say so much to us all. Keep on enjoying it all the best.
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