Here is a glass of water from my well.
It tastes of rock and root and earth and rain;
It is the best I have, my only spell,
And it is cold, and better than champagne.
Perhaps someone will pass this house one day
To drink, and be restored, and go his way,
Someone in dark confusion as I was
When I drank down cold water in a glass,
Drank a transparent health to keep me sane,
After the bitter mood had gone again.
—May Sarton
This poem was featured on The Writer’s Almanac today. You can click the title to listen/download it. I liked the poem a lot for its simplicity. This is the mindset we should have in life: here is a glass of water from my well. The reality for me and many people in my area and on into the mountains is that our water is becoming polluted from the run-off of mountaintop removal. It’s destroying our creeks and seeping into our water. At a recent writers workshop, they gave us gallons of water because we shouldn’t drink the water and over in the building where we had sessions, the toilet water was dirty. It’s so sad.
That said, I think we can learn a lot from this poem. Sometimes the simplest of things can bring us such joy and can refresh our minds, bodies, and souls. I’m going to get to see some friends tonight who refresh my soul and I can’t wait.
-S
