Being a former English professor now working for a bank, I began a year and a half ago satiating my literary appetite (and love for sharing literature with others) by posting a “Poem of the Month” on my wall at work.
I thought it would also be nice to share these poems with family and friends who aren’t frequent visitors to my desk, so I’m emailing this month’s selection to you. I hope you enjoy it and the ones to follow, but please don’t hesitate to let me know if you’d prefer not to be on this list.
Percy Bysshe Shelley
1792 – 1822
from Prometheus Unbound
To suffer woes which Hope thinks infinite;
To forgive wrongs darker than death or nights;
To defy Power, which seems omnipotent;
To love, and bear; to Hope till Hope creates
From its own wreck the thing it contemplates;
Neither to change, nor falter, nor repent;
This, like thy glory, Titan, is to be
Good, great and joyous, beautiful and free;
This is alone Life, Joy, Empire, and Victory.
Fantastic passage. So powerful. Thanks for adding me to your poem of the month email. Be well.