Firefly
HUDDLED BENEATH THE SKY
—Rumi
The sadness I have caused any face
by letting a stray word
strike it,
any pain
I have caused you,
what can I do to make us even?
Demand a hundredfold of me—I'll pay it.
During the day I hold my feet accountable
to watch out for wondrous insects and their dwellings.
Why would I want to bring horror
into their extraordinary
world?
Magnetic fields draw us to Light; they move our limbs and thoughts.
But it is still dark; if our hearts do not hold a lantern,
we will stumble over each other,
huddled beneath the sky
as we are.
(translated by Daniel Ladinsky)
__________________
—Medusa
—Rumi
The sadness I have caused any face
by letting a stray word
strike it,
any pain
I have caused you,
what can I do to make us even?
Demand a hundredfold of me—I'll pay it.
During the day I hold my feet accountable
to watch out for wondrous insects and their dwellings.
Why would I want to bring horror
into their extraordinary
world?
Magnetic fields draw us to Light; they move our limbs and thoughts.
But it is still dark; if our hearts do not hold a lantern,
we will stumble over each other,
huddled beneath the sky
as we are.
(translated by Daniel Ladinsky)
__________________
—Medusa
