‘This Only’ (Czeslaw Milosz)
This Only
A valley and above it forests in autumn colors.
A voyager arrives, a map leads him there.
Or perhaps memory. Once long ago in the sun,
When snow first fell, riding this way
He felt joy, strong, without reason,
Joy of the eyes. Everything was the rhythm
Of shifting trees, of a bird in flight,
Of a train on the viaduct, a feast in motion.
He returns years later, has no demands.
He wants only one, most precious thing:
To see, purely and simply, without name,
Without expectations, fears, or hopes,
At the edge where there is no I or not-I.
South Hadley, 1985
(by Czeslaw Milosz, English version of original Polish by Robert Hass)
(New and Collected Poems: 1931-2001. Copyright © 1988,1991,1995, 2001 by Czeslaw Milosz Royalites, Inc. ISBN 978-0-06-051448-8)
Reflection on Poem
Is there a place I arrive at in life where, like a traveller with a map in hand, I can identify for myself what is “this only“ thing I want in my life? To see it “purely and simply”, to feel its joy and rhythm? This poem invites me to arrive at such a “this only” stage on my journey.
Robert, Jan 2020
Photo by Claudio Testa on Unsplash
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A lovely and challenging poem, Robert. Thanks. A similar place for me is the beach in the town where I grew up. When visiting my family and walking that beach again I always go hoping to connect with its beauty. The realities of an aging parent or the uncertainties of family dynamics often fill my head while I’m walking and push me to demand…an answer, solace or relief from worry. There are moments, however, when the sand, waves, breeze and warmth free me just to see and I am able to connect with what is there and beyond.
Finding ‘this only’, and holding it as something to be cherished is no small thing as life washes over us with such force. Thank you for sharing.
To live without demands. A part of me longs for that, and yet to live that way without being emotionally detached feels like a nearly impossible challenge. I know presence is a key, and yet I want to also live in the light of the past and future, with kindness and hope.