A friend found in the grass this week.
KEEPING A JOURNAL by William Stafford
At night it was easy for me with my little candle
to sit late recording what happened that day. Sometimes
rain breathing in from the dark would begin softly
across the roof and then drum wildly for attention.
The candle flame would hunger after each wafting
of air. My pen inscribed thin shadows that leaned
forward and hurried their lines along the wall.More important than what was recorded, these evenings
deepened my life: they framed every event
or thought and placed it with care by the others.
As time went on, that scribbled wall--even if
it stayed blank--became where everything
recognized itself and passed into meaning.
William (or Bill) Stafford stayed faithful to his journals and diaries over the years, urging friends, family members, and students to keep a record of their thoughts. The thoughts cherished and saved in ink often took shape as poems on a later date, when the experiences ripened well enough to attach themselves to words.
