I know that timid breathing. Where Do I begin and end? And where, As I strum the thing, do I pick up That which momentously declares Itself not to be I and yet Must be. It could be nothing else.
About this quote
- What does it mean?
- The speaker recognizes a familiar uncertainty in expression, where the self and the created work blur into something that feels both foreign and essential.
- In plain terms
- When creating, it's hard to tell where you end and the work begins.
- What can you take from it?
- Accept that art often reveals parts of us we didn't know were there.
Where it applies
Putting it to work
Questions to consider
- When does your work feel separate from you?
- How do you know an idea is yours?
Another view
This view may undervalue intentional craft in favor of mystique.
More from Wallace Stevens
The blue guitar And I are one.
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