Dear Friends,

One of my favorite movies of ALL time is “Il Postino”, a beautiful story about a postman who by chance forges a relationship with the exiled South American poet, Pablo Neruda. It is a story about the power of relationship. It is perhaps even more a story about the power of poetry.

Poetry is not simply an artistic nicety. It is not merely a clever play on words. It is a pathway to the sublime. It is the cracking open of imagination – which some would describe as the gateway to hope and transformation. In the above-mentioned film, a man’s life is forever changed by his introduction to poetry. Listen to Neruda’s poem, “Poetry”, describing the transformation:

And it was at that age … Poetry arrived
in search of me. I don’t know where
it came from, from winter or a river.

I did not know what to say, my mouth
had no way with names,
my eyes were blind,
and something started in my soul,
fever or forgotten wings,
and I made my own way,
deciphering that fire,
and I wrote the first faint line,
faint, without substance, pure nonsense,
pure wisdom of someone who knows nothing,
and suddenly I saw
the heavens unfastened and open.

And I, infinitesimal being,
drunk with the great starry void,
likeness, image of mystery,
felt myself a pure part of the abyss,
I wheeled with the stars,
my heart broke loose on the wind.

As most of you know, Mich Zeman loved poetry. He shared it with this congregation over the course of many years. It was not just a passing fancy or casual pastime. He believed in the creative power of language to move souls and reveal the hidden depths of reality.

On next Tuesday night, we will hold the 3rd Annual Mich Zeman Poetry Fest (see below). As with most other THCC offerings, it will be virtual. But you won’t want to miss it – this chance to call up some memories of brother Mich, listen to some poetry, and have our hearts break loose on the wind.

Carter