"The Planet On The Table"

Ariel was glad he had written his poems.
They were of a remembered time
Or of something seen that he liked. 

Other makings of the sun
Were waste and welter
And the ripe shrub writhed. 

His self and the sun were one
And his poems, although makings of his self,
Were no less makings of the sun. 

It was not important that they survive.
What mattered was that they should bear
Some lineament or character, 

Some affluence, if only half-perceived,
In the poverty of their words,
Of the planet of which they were part.


Written in 1954 by the Modernist poet Wallace Stevens (1879 - 1955)



(Backblip for Sunday 31st January 2016)

So sad to hear that Terry Wogan has passed away.  I only worked with him once at the BBC, recording a short Radio 4 Appeal to tie in with Children In Need.  He was of course a consummate professional with that unmistakable voice, and he clearly cared a lot about the Children In Need charity.  A lot of my workmates were regulars on his Radio 2 shows over many years, and all remember him as a lovely man who was great fun to be around.  He will be genuinely sadly missed.