Most Like an Arch This Marriage
By John Ciardi
Most like an arch—an entrance which upholds
and shores the stone-crush up the air like lace.
Mass made idea, and idea held in place.
A lock in time. Inside half-heaven unfolds.
Most like an arch—two weaknesses that lean
into a strength. Two fallings become firm.
Two joined abeyances become a term
naming the fact that teaches fact to mean.
Not quite that? Not much less. World as it is,
what’s strong and separate falters. All I do
at piling stone on stone apart from you
is roofless around nothing. Till we kiss
I am no more than upright and unset.
It is by falling in and in we make
the all-bearing point, for one another’s sake,
in faultless failing, raised by our own weight.
The Collected Poems of John Ciardi (University of Arkansas Press, 1997)
6 years after our first date and I wouldn't change a thing.
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5 comments:
I believe it was the Roman's who invented the the arch (others had previously discovered post and lintels). I always wondered how they discovered the arch... Some one built 2 flimsy columns and they happened to fall toward each other and their equalized collapsing held them both up.
Happy happy! Congrats!
So sweet and so beautiful...lovely couple and picture! Happy Anniversary!
Wow, 6 years!! Congratulations you two and here's hoping for many, many more!!
how sweet! congrats on six years! My husband and I have been together 11 years, married 8. A third of my life spent with the love of my life. How lucky are we??
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