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Hugo Chavez
| Open Poetry #48 |
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Hugo Chavez |
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gilead Senior Member
since 2008-03-10
Posts 1067nevada, USA 
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Hugo Chavez “I want to live; Please do not let me die!”--- The dying words of a mortal god Who comes face to face with power And powerlessness. Oh, how profound The hour must be to be a king upon a throne Of crumbling clay! But I judge you not, O king among kings--- I, too, want to live, even if nothing more Than a peasant with a plow, pausing Upon a slope down toward a sea, And not hearing the splash of a mighty Icarus, Punctuating a sentence unto eternal silence. |
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| © Copyright 2013 arthur chapman, jr - All Rights Reserved | |||
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gilead Senior Member
since 2008-03-10
Posts 1067nevada, USA |
I wanted to simply say something non-political about this man's passing, and perhaps to say something about our mortality that is bound up in belief of continuity and doubt. I believe. Art |
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gilead Senior Member
since 2008-03-10
Posts 1067nevada, USA |
Perhaps Kim Jung Un will take note! Art |
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OwlSA Member Rara Avis
since 2005-11-07
Posts 9347Durban, South Africa |
Art, I hear your beautiful voice and the essence of who you are, in the exquisite compassion of this heart-quivering poem and I so “get” the point (but I am glad you made it even clearer in your additional note) and I agree with you with every fibre of my being. No matter how bad somebody is, it is, in my humble opinion – and so obviously yours – always very sad indeed when anybody dies. And, as you said, nobody (no matter what he/she says - or even does) wants to die. As despicable as dictators are for the misery, devastation and annihilation they have caused and the evil they have done, they too deserve our tears. There must have been one or two good things they have done, which we have either forgotten or never knew about. I don’t know anything about Hugo Chavez, except the little said about him (here in South Africa) at the time of his death (and even had to look him up on the Internet – just to remind myself of which country he came from – I didn’t read any more because it was immaterial to me in the light of the point of your poem), so I don’t know what he has or hasn’t done, except that he was a dictator of Venezuela. I admit that I am not much of a people person (I get on best with all animals), but I have often said that I have varying amounts of respect for all people, but I believe (and know) that even those regarded as the least deserving of respect, should get, at least, a tiny basic bit of our respect. While judging is necessary in court and in many specific situations, who are we otherwise to judge anyone, especially at the moment of death (which moment none of us have yet met - and so how can we know how we will meet it)? And if we cannot have compassion for all people, how can we expect or even dare to want, respect ourselves (for none of us are perfect)? Whilst I have the greatest respect for Nelson Mandela and the memory of Mother Theresa, the three for whom I have the least are Hitler, Mugabe (the dictator of Zimbabwe, further north than South Africa where I live) and Geoffrey Dahlmer (the American murderer and cannibal who stored pieces of people in his fridge and ate them), but if any of those three were lying on the ground in front of me, I would not and could not – nor would I, nor anyone else, have any right whatsoever, to – kick them. Thank you, Art, for your humanity and your compassion. From other poetry and comments of yours I have read, I wasn’t surprised at all, that this was your viewpoint – but it was nevertheless very heartwarming to hear/read it. Thank you for exposing us to your good, kind, compassionate soul. Owl |
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OwlSA Member Rara Avis
since 2005-11-07
Posts 9347Durban, South Africa |
Oh, I got so caught up in discussing the message of your poem, that I forgot to say what an exquisitely written poem and work of art your poem is. The images and the emotion jump out and captivate this reader, and I am sure, all others. I can’t remember if you have said what you do – but I hope you are an English teacher or lecturer or motivational speaker or leader of some sort where you can be heard by many because your words are very powerful in the very best sense of the word. Thank you for enriching me. Owl |
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Lighthousebob Member Elite
since 2000-06-14
Posts 4725California |
I especially like how... quote: ...hangs in midair between the peasant overlooking the sea and the Icarus, Hugo Chavez, facing eternity. Very well written. Enjoyed!  |
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Marchmadness Member Rara Avis
since 2007-09-16
Posts 9271So. El Monte, California |
Hi Art, So happy to see you here. I haven't been here for a little while myself. Powerful poem here. You haven't lost your touch. Ida |
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