I read this poem recently and can’t stop thinking about it. Joy Harjo is the 23rd Poet Laureate of the United States and a member of the Muscogee (Creek) Nation. She lives in Tulsa, Oklahoma and if you would like to check out all of her work, here is her official website.

I think my favorite lines from this poem are “If I think behind me, I might break. If I think forward, I lose now.” They have been resonating in my head for weeks and could almost make me cry if I think about them too long. If that’s not a tribute to the power of poetry, I don’t know what is. Please enjoy the poem and tell me what line makes you catch your breath. I hope it carries you through your Monday if nothing else!

Wait.. having read it again I also love “I have found you in the story again.” I’m telling you, it’s a good one!

Fall Song

It is a dark fall day.
The earth is slightly damp with rain.
I hear a jay.
The cry is blue.
I have found you in the story again.
Is there another word for ‘‘divine’’?
I need a song that will keep sky open in my mind.
If I think behind me, I might break.
If I think forward, I lose now.
Forever will be a day like this
Strung perfectly on the necklace of days.
Slightly overcast
Yellow leaves
Your jacket hanging in the hallway
Next to mine.