Reading Poetry to One Another

My mom and I intended to watch a movie one evening after Thanksgiving. But first, she wanted to share a poem that moved her. It’s about giving thanks and was written by Anglo-Welsh poet Edward Thomas (who died young during WWI). The poem is titled “The Owl”:

Downhill I came, hungry, and yet not starved;

Cold, yet had heat within me that was proof

Against the North wind; tired, yet so that rest

Had seemed the sweetest thing under a roof.

Then at the inn I had food, fire, and rest,

Knowing how hungry, cold, and tired was I.

All of the night was quite barred out except

An owl’s cry, a most melancholy cry

Shaken out long and clear upon the hill,

No merry note, nor cause of merriment,

But one telling me plain what I escaped

And others could not, that night, as in I went.

And salted was my food, and my repose,

Salted and sobered, too, by the bird’s voice

Speaking for all who lay under the stars,

Soldiers and poor, unable to rejoice.

- Edward Thomas

One poem led to another, and we decided not to watch the movie after all! Instead, we spent the evening reading poetry to one another. We found a few poems on her bookshelf and more online. We were in heaven. My mom pulled out some of her own poems, most of them written years ago. I was astonished by their beauty urging her to organize her poetry and get them published.

Needless to say, mom and I spent an emotionally rich, memorable holiday evening together. Have you had a similar experience with a relative or friend? And what do you think of  “The Owl”?