In memoriam Robert Bly

It may be particularly appropriate that this Thanksgiving week, although we are saddened to learn that the poet Robert Bly has walked on, we can, should be, and are grateful that "Robert Bly was appointed the first official Minnesota poet laureate February 27, 2008.” [Library of Congress link re “official” laureate]

Almost exactly two years ago, on November 15, 2019, we posted this:

Robert Bly Collected Poems

This morning I finished reading Robert Bly's Collected Poems, all 500+ pages. I'm thankful I lived long enough to read them all. Some of his poems left me confused; others I felt like I understood. Since Bly has been described as “one of the legends of contemporary poetry,” according to David Biespel, “the prototypical non-modernist the one who set in motion a poetics of intensity for generations to come.”, and is Minnesota's second (not first) poet laureate, I wanted to become acquainted with all of his poetry. The fact that I've taken a few poetry courses at the Loft Literary Center with someone who has edited several books on Robert Bly probably has something to do with my undertaking. Also, in fairness, I've read most of the volumes of poetry written by Joyce Sutphen, our current poet laureate of Minnesota but had only skimmed through a few of Bly's separate volumes. I do find most of Sutphen's work more comprehensible but can't say whether that says more about the poets, their poems, or the reader. Perhaps that's as it should be. In any case, I'm thankful to live somewhere that produces such poets of note and noteworthiness. I'm also thankful to have been able to explore so much of the country in Minnesota captured in Bly's and Sutphen's poetry.

 As with too many things these days, it’s fitting that we remember the guidance “Don’t cry because it’s over, smile because it happened.” In his own way and his own words, such as those in today’s poem, Bly acknowledged that such a perspective can be essential.

Robbert Bly In This World

If you’re interested in learning more about Robert Bly's life and writings, I suggest you look for one or more of the books edited by Thomas R. Smith. A list is here [scroll down].

What Things Want

Robert Bly - 1926-2021

You have to let things
Occupy their own space.
This room is small,
But the green settee

Likes to be here.
The big marsh reeds,
Crowding out the slough,
Find the world good.

You have to let things
Be as they are.
Who knows which of us
Deserves the world more?

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