In memory of the great poet, Derek Walcott, whose poem, Love After Love, is a personal favorite, I’d like to share it. For more on his life and accomplishments visit The Guardian.
The time will come
when, with elation
you will greet yourself arriving
at your own door, in your own mirror
and each will smile at the other’s welcome,
and say, sit here. Eat.
You will love again the stranger who was your self.
Give wine. Give bread. Give back your heart
to itself, to the stranger who has loved you
all your life, whom you ignored
for another, who knows you by heart.
Take down the love letters from the bookshelf,
the photographs, the desperate notes,
peel your own image from the mirror.
Sit. Feast on your life.
Thank you, Derek Walcott, for your words.
Renee Johnson is the author of Behind The Mask, Herald Angels, Acquisition, and The Haunting of William Gray. She is currently working on a Young Adult novel, while editing a suspense novel which has international flair–an homage to her love of travel and foreign food. She lives on a farm in North Carolina with her husband, Tony Johnson, and two very spoiled German shepherds named Hansel and Gretel.
Renee Johnson Writes 
I love this wonderful poem Renee.
It resonates with those of us who found our calling later in life.
Beautiful poem by Derek Walcott. It describes the wonder and happiness you must be feeling in a well deserved celebration of your talents, books and travels. Way to go and keep on going strong. 🙂
Thank you, E.C. It does have special meaning for me–has for some time. I was, and am, saddened by the loss to the world, yet in a strange way, feel an urgency to write. The sand runs out on us all…