Home > Author > Wendell Berry >

" At start of spring I open a trench
In the ground. I put into it
The winter’s accumulation of paper,
Pages I do not want to read
Again, useless words, fragments,
errors. And I put into it
the contents of the outhouse:
light of the suns, growth of the ground,
Finished with one of their journeys.
To the sky, to the wind, then,
and to the faithful trees, I confess
my sins: that I have not been happy
enough, considering my good luck;
have listened to too much noise,
have been inattentive to wonders,
have lusted after praise.
And then upon the gathered refuse,
of mind and body, I close the trench
folding shut again the dark,
the deathless earth. Beneath that seal
the old escapes into the new. "

Wendell Berry , New Collected Poems


Image for Quotes

Wendell Berry quote : At start of spring I open a trench<br />In the ground. I put into it <br />The winter’s accumulation of paper, <br />Pages I do not want to read<br />Again, useless words, fragments,<br />errors. And I put into it<br />the contents of the outhouse:<br />light of the suns, growth of the ground,<br />Finished with one of their journeys.<br />To the sky, to the wind, then,<br />and to the faithful trees, I confess<br />my sins: that I have not been happy<br />enough, considering my good luck;<br />have listened to too much noise,<br />have been inattentive to wonders,<br />have lusted after praise.<br />And then upon the gathered refuse,<br />of mind and body, I close the trench<br />folding shut again the dark,<br />the deathless earth. Beneath that seal<br />the old escapes into the new.