Signpost
Civilized, crying how to be human again:this will tell you how.
Turn outward, love things, not men, turn right away from humanity,
Let that doll die. Consider if you like how the lilies grow,
Lean on the silent rock until you feel its divinity
Make your veins cold, look at the silent stars, let your eyes
Climb the great ladder out of the pit of yourself and man.
Things are so beautiful, your love will follow your eyes;
Things are the God, you will love God, and not in vain,
For what we love, we grow to it, we share its nature. At length
You will look back along the stars' rays and see that even
The poor doll humanity has a place under heaven.
Its qualities repair their mosaic around you, the chips of strength
And sickness; but now you are free, even to become human,
But born of the rock and the air, not of a woman.
___________________
Robinson Jeffers
The Selected Poetry of Robinson Jeffers
Random House 1959
We went to his house once long ago.
It's like one of those few places you can't find again.
