"THE HILL WE CLIMB" Amanda Gorman, Poet Laureate
I was so moved by the words of Amanda Gorman at this mornings inauguration. Possibly the most profound poem, prayer that was spoken over us today. A young, bright 22 year old with emense wisdom worth sharing. May be live this (I transcribed the best I could):
THE HILL WE CLIMB:
Amanda Gorman, National Poet Laurete 2021
When day comes we ask ourselves
Where can we find light
In this never ending shade
The loss we carry
A sea we must wade
We’ve braved the belly of the beast
We’ve learned that
Quiet isn’t always peace
And the norms and notions of what just is
Isn’t always justice
And yet the dawn is ours before we knew it
Somehow we do it
Somehow we’ve weathered and witnessed
A nation that isn’t broken
But simply unfinished
We the successors of a country and a time
Where a skinny black girl
Decended from slaves
And Raised by a single mother
Can dream of becoming president
Only to find herself reciting for one
And yes we are far from polished
Far from pristine
But that doesn’t mean we are striving to form a union that is perfect
We are striving to forge our union with purpose
To compose a county committed
To all cultures, colors, characters and conditions of man
And so we lift our gaze not to what stands between us
But what stands before us
We close the divide
Because we know to put our future first
We must first put our differences aside
We lay down our arms
So we can reach out our arms to one another
We seek harm to none
And harmony for all
Let the globe if nothing else say this is true:
That even as we grieved we grew
That even as we hurt we hoped
That even as we tired
We tried that will be forever be tied to gather victorious
Not because we will never again know defeat
But because we will never again sow division
Scripture tell us to envision
“That everyone shall sit under their own vine and fig tree
And no one shall make them afraid”
If we’re to live up to our own time
That victory won’t ligthen the blade
But all the bridges we have made
The hill we climb if only we dare it
Being America is more than a pride we inherit
It’s the past we step into
And how we repair it
We’ve seen a force that would shatter our nation rather than share it
Would destroy our country if it meant delaying democracy
And this effort very nearly succeeded
But while democracy can be periodically delayed
It can never be permanently defeated
In this truth, in this faith we trust
For while we have our eyes on the future
History has its eyes on us
This is the era of just, redemption
We feared it at it’s inception
We did not feel prepared to
To be the heirs of such a terrifying hour
But within in it we found the power
To author a new chapter
To offer hope and laughter
To ourselves
So while once we asked
“How can we possibly prevail over catastrophe ?”
Now we assert:
“How could catastrophe possibly prevail over us?”
We will not march back to what was
But moved to what shall be
A country that is
Bruised but whole
Benevolent and bold
Fierce and free
We will not be
Turned around or interrupted by intimidation
Because we know our
Inaction and inertia will be the inheritance of the next generation
Our blenders become their burdens
But one thing is certain
If we merge mercy with might
And might with right
Then Love becomes our legacies
And change our children’s birthright
So let us leave behind a country better than the one we were left
With ever breath from a Bronze pounded chest chest
We will raise this wounded world
Into a wondrous one
We will rise from the gold limped hills of the west
We will rise from the wind swept northeast
Where our forefathers first realized revolution
We will rise from the lake wrenched cities of the Midwestern states
We will rise from the sun baked south
We will rebuild, reconcile and recover in
Even known nook of our nation
And every corner called our country
Our people diverse and beautiful
Will emerge battered and beautiful
When they come
We step out of shade a flame and unafraid
The new dawn blooms as we free it
For there was always light
If we are brave enough to see it
If only we’re brave enough to be it
Amanda Gorman, National Poet Laurete 2021
New York Times article: https://www.nytimes.com/2021/01/19/books/amanda-gorman-inauguration-hill-we-climb.html