To Love, the Victory

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/R._N._Taber

[Update, 13/5/18: So-called Islamic State have said it is responsible for the latest terror attack on ordinary people going about their own everyday lives, this time in Paris. France, along with the whole civilised world remains defiant against these people. Human nature is such that, to the end of time,  the power of love and respect for its finer intentions will always triumph over hate, hate crime and a malicious stereotyping that I dare say will always be with us just as its perpetrators will always fail to acknowledge that they are, in reality, but wasters and losers.] RNT

Now, a number of readers have asked me to repeat the link to my (very) informal poetry reading on the 4^th plinth in London’s Trafalgar Square back in July 2009; it was my contribution to Antony Gormley’s One & Other ‘living sculpture’ project that ran 24/7 for 100 days during which time 2,400 ordinary people were invited to do their ‘own thing’ for an hour. I included some poems on a gay theme among others. [The entire web-stream is now archived in the British Library.]

http://www.webarchive.org.uk/wayback/archive/20100223121732/oneandother.co.uk/participants/Roger_T  [For now, at least, this link needs the latest Adobe Flash Player  and works best in Firefox; the archives website cannot run Flash but changes scheduled for later this year may well mean the link will open without it. Ignore any error message and give it a minute or so to start up. The video lasts an hour. ] RT 3/18

Meanwhile…

Photo: taken from the Internet

Let blinkered homophobes say what they will, the love two gay or transgender people share runs as true and stands every chance of lasting as long as that shared by any heterosexual couple. Nor is it likely to be frowned upon by any God so those who believe God is Love need have no fear that their sexuality in any way compromises their religion. As for those socio-cultural-religious bigots who may well tell you otherwise, plainly their capacity for love (other than for themselves) is sadly lacking. Even, so, human nature's capacity for love is - and always has been - far  stronger than any rogue capacity for hate as we continue live in hope of a better, kinder world.

This poem has not appeared on the blog since 2010 and is a favourite of mine.

TO LOVE, THE VICTORY

I tried to kill my love (it would not die),

banish emotions that refused to go;

Some said you were the guilty one (not I)

those enemies of love who cannot know

It takes two to begin a love affair

and two, again, to bring the shutters down

yet only one to bring true love to bear

on a heart growing dark and all but done

I begged another chance to defy them

who always said our love could never be;

dare I say it’s the singer, not the hymn

shall raise us to rousing tunes of glory?

Still, some gossip and spread tales about us

but we (though gay) in love, victorious

Copyright R. N. Taber 2005

[Note: This poem has been slightly revised from the original as it appears in A Feeling for the Quickness of Time by R. N. Taber, Assembly Books, 2005; 2^nd (revised) e-edition in preparation.]