Intercession

INTERCESSION Dylan Thomas, one of the twentieth century’s greatest poets, once wrote: "I hold a beast, an angel and a madman in me." This Canadian-Australian hybrid poet with his bipolar-madman in him, with his lower nature as much of a beast in him as other men, if not more; and with an angel, a higher nature, he adorns "the walks of the Garden of Reality." This is neither a complaint or a boast, but a simple and ,indeed, quite complex reality. –Ron Price with thanks to Dylan Thomas, The Love Letters of Dylan Thomas, London: Phoenix, 2008; and ‘Abdu’l-Baha, Baha’i Prayers, Wilmette, 2002, p.156. And in all this poetry I inquire as to the working of these three forces: their subjugation, control, victory and expression, downthrow and upheaval. I expose my soul, far too much of my inner life and private character than is wise and normal. Unlike you, Dylan, I would not enjoy adulation. I do not need it but, if it served this Cause, I would endure as much as my spirit could stand. Much of my life has seemed to be a public performance even in a solitary chamber like this study where as a serious poet I will never have to read out loud to those whose joy is found in other forms of sound and sight filling the airwaves--- pervasively in print & electronic media. But, if I do dear Dylan, may you intercede on my behalf to emulate your rich, gorgeous voice, to reproduce your extravagant bardic style but without the need to get drunk and so give the audience a performance of their life.1 With thanks to Robert Fulford, "Review of Dylan Thomas’ Collected Letters," The National Post, 27 January 2001. 1 Ron Price 16 August 2008