i carry it in my heart

"kisses are a better fate than wisdom"
-E.E. Cummings-

E.E. Cummings is one of the most acclaimed American poets of the 20th century. Not only was he a poet, but he was a painter, essayist, author and playwright. He wrote approximately 2900 poems, an autobiographical novel, four plays, and several essays, along with crafting a number of paintings and drawings as well. Despite his popularity, he is by no means my favorite poet (that would be Maya Angelou) but he did, however, write one of my favorite poems of all time...

It's a love sonnet, speaking sentiments of a deep and profound love... the kind that can keep the stars apart and that can transcend the soul or the mind.

I Carry Your Heart With Me (E.E. Cummings)

I carry your heart with me (I carry it in
my heart) I am never without it (Anywhere
I go you go, my dear; and whatever is done
by only me is your doing, my darling)

I fear
No fate (for you are my fate, my sweet) I want
No world (for beautiful you are my world, my true)
And it's you are whatever a moon has always meant
And whatever a sun will always sing is you

Here is the deepest secret nobody knows
(Here is the root of the root and the bud of the bud
And the sky of the sky of a tree called life; which grows
Higher than the soul can hope or mind can hide
And this is the wonder that's keeping the stars apart

I carry your heart (I carry it in my heart).

I love it... surprisingly, because I'm not into "mushy gushy romantic love stuff." This poem on the other hand does not come off as "mushy gushy" so much as it conveys the deep-rooted, everlasting and eternal love that exists between an individual and their mate. By no means is this love superficial, one-sided, or fleeting... it is unbreakable. This is the way it is supposed to be, even though relationships like this are so few and far-between nowadays. We can only be so lucky to be in love like this at least once in our lives. In that case once would be enough though, right?! It would be forever.

Many of Cumming's poems (including this one) have been set to music... or incorporated into love songs, like one of my faves... Check it out !!

Bloc Party - Ion Square