{"id":2867,"date":"2019-01-02T09:35:49","date_gmt":"2019-01-02T14:35:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sites.udmercy.edu\/mission-and-identity\/?p=2867"},"modified":"2019-09-18T16:45:03","modified_gmt":"2019-09-18T20:45:03","slug":"jan-2-tagore-2-when-thou-commandest-me-tosing","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sites.udmercy.edu\/poetry\/2019\/01\/02\/jan-2-tagore-2-when-thou-commandest-me-tosing\/","title":{"rendered":"Jan 2 Tagore # 2 “When thou commandest me to\tsing . . . “"},"content":{"rendered":"

Wednesday, January 2 \u2014 \u00a0 \u201cDrunk with the joy of singing\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n

On this dawn of Term 2, out my window Livernois and McNichols morning traffic reminds me that this is a work day, the first of 2019; \u00a0administrators, staff, \u00a0faculty, and \u00a0students begin to suck it up and plan toward the time when campus becomes a big part of home \u00a0and work from January to May.<\/p>\n

What poem might speak to the courage & hope & anxiety that stirs a campus at the dawn of Term Two? \u00a0 These 3 days of an abbreviated week find people \u00a0remembering rituals that marked the turning of the year: \u00a0visiting friends and kin; \u00a0 eating and drinking more than ordinarily, storytelling and singing that waken deep places of memory, some sad, some awash with tenderness. \u00a0 \u00a0 Rabindranath Tagore\u2019s poem \u00a0(Gitanjali<\/u>, # 2) can remind readers that the challenges of starting a fresh season of learning are not limited to anxiety and the sticker shock of reading all the term\u2019s syllabi at once, \u00a015 weeks of work, for every class, yikes! \u00a0Tagore\u2019s\u00a0Poem # 2 exults. \u00a0The wonder of \u00a0a new beginning and of finding one\u2019s voice once more.<\/p>\n

Best to read the poem out loud, with pauses.<\/p>\n

Have a blest first week.<\/p>\n

john st sj<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Today\u2019s post: \u00a0Rabindranath Tagore \u00a0Gitanjali # 2<\/strong><\/p>\n

When Thou commandest me to sing
\nit seems that my heart would break with pride
\nand I look to Thy face
\nand tears come to my eyes.<\/p>\n

All that is harsh and dissonant in my life
\nmelts into one sweet harmony
\nand my adoration spreads wings like a glad bird
\non its flight across the sea.<\/p>\n

I know Thou takest pleasure in my singing
\nI know that only as a singer I come before Thy presence
\nI touch by the edge of the far spreading wing of my song
\nThy feet which I could never aspire to reach.<\/p>\n

Drunk with the joy of singing
\nI forget myself
\nand call Thee friend
\nwho art my lord.<\/p>\n

Tagore\u00a0\u00a0Gitanjali<\/u>\u00a0 # 2<\/p>\n

mcnichols campus after snow, december 13, 2010<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Wednesday, January 2 \u2014 \u00a0 \u201cDrunk with the joy of singing\u201d On this dawn of Term 2, out my window Livernois and McNichols morning traffic reminds me that this is a work day, the first of 2019; \u00a0administrators, staff, \u00a0faculty, … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":139,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[11641],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.udmercy.edu\/poetry\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2867"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.udmercy.edu\/poetry\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.udmercy.edu\/poetry\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.udmercy.edu\/poetry\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/139"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.udmercy.edu\/poetry\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2867"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/sites.udmercy.edu\/poetry\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2867\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2869,"href":"https:\/\/sites.udmercy.edu\/poetry\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2867\/revisions\/2869"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.udmercy.edu\/poetry\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2867"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.udmercy.edu\/poetry\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2867"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.udmercy.edu\/poetry\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2867"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}