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The Hill We Climb: An Inaugural Poem for the Country
Goodreads Choice Award
Winner for Best Poetry (2021)An alternative cover edition for this ISBN 9780593465271 can be found here.
On January 20, 2021, Amanda Gorman became the sixth and youngest poet to deliver a poetry reading at a presidential inauguration. Taking the stage after the 46th president of the United States, Joe Biden, Gorman captivated the nation and brought hope to viewers around the globe.
This edition includes a foreword by Oprah Winfrey.
On January 20, 2021, Amanda Gorman became the sixth and youngest poet to deliver a poetry reading at a presidential inauguration. Taking the stage after the 46th president of the United States, Joe Biden, Gorman captivated the nation and brought hope to viewers around the globe.
This edition includes a foreword by Oprah Winfrey.
29 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2021
About the author
Amanda Gorman
25 books2,657 followersAmanda Gorman was the first Youth Poet Laureate of the United States. She is also an activist. Gorman's work focuses on issues of oppression, feminism, race, and marginalization, as well as the African diaspora. In January 2021, she became the youngest poet to read at a presidential inauguration, reading her poem "The Hill We Climb" at the inauguration of Joe Biden.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 3,042 reviews
March 31, 2021
hearing it for the first time was breathtaking and now reading it for the first time was moving
May 16, 2021
When day comes, we ask ourselves:
Where can we find light
In this never-ending shade?
The loss we carry, a sea we must wade.
We've braved the belly of the beast
We've learned that quiet isn't always peace"
Even more than reading it, better watch it performed by the author: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LZ055...
The gestures, the crisp rhythm, the absolution of the moment, to feel like perhaps COVID and the last four years of hatefulness might possibly wash off in the sunny, cold January morning, spoken.
A nation that isn't broken but simply unfinished.
The words written on the page, so simple in their form and meter don't do the performance justice.
For there is always light
if only we are brave enough to see it
if we're brave enough to be it.
Where can we find light
In this never-ending shade?
The loss we carry, a sea we must wade.
We've braved the belly of the beast
We've learned that quiet isn't always peace"
Even more than reading it, better watch it performed by the author: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LZ055...
The gestures, the crisp rhythm, the absolution of the moment, to feel like perhaps COVID and the last four years of hatefulness might possibly wash off in the sunny, cold January morning, spoken.
A nation that isn't broken but simply unfinished.
The words written on the page, so simple in their form and meter don't do the performance justice.
For there is always light
if only we are brave enough to see it
if we're brave enough to be it.
Read
June 1, 2023Since this poem was banned from a Miami, Florida school district, here it is in full:
When day comes, we ask ourselves, where can we find light in this never-ending shade?
The loss we carry. A sea we must wade.
We braved the belly of the beast.
We've learned that quiet isn't always peace, and the norms and notions of what "just" is isn't always justice.
And yet the dawn is ours before we knew it.
Somehow we do it.
Somehow we weathered and witnessed a nation that isn't broken, but simply unfinished.
We, the successors of a country and a time where a skinny Black girl descended from slaves and raised by a single mother can dream of becoming president, only to find herself reciting for one.
And, yes, we are far from polished, far from pristine, but that doesn't mean we are striving to form a union that is perfect.
We are striving to forge our union with purpose.
To compose a country committed to all cultures, colors, characters and conditions of man.
And so we lift our gaze, not to what stands between us, but what stands before us.
We close the divide because we know to put our future first, we must first put our differences aside.
We lay down our arms so we can reach out our arms to one another.
We seek harm to none and harmony for all.
Let the globe, if nothing else, say this is true.
That even as we grieved, we grew.
That even as we hurt, we hoped.
That even as we tired, we tried.
That we'll forever be tied together, victorious.
Not because we will never again know defeat, but because we will never again sow division.
Scripture tells us to envision that everyone shall sit under their own vine and fig tree, and no one shall make them afraid.
If we're to live up to our own time, then victory won't lie in the blade, but in all the bridges we've made.
That is the promise to glade, the hill we climb, if only we dare.
It's because being American is more than a pride we inherit.
It's the past we step into and how we repair it.
We've seen a force that would shatter our nation, rather than share it.
Would destroy our country if it meant delaying democracy.
And this effort very nearly succeeded.
But while democracy can be periodically delayed, it can never be permanently defeated.
In this truth, in this faith we trust, for while we have our eyes on the future, history has its eyes on us.
This is the era of just redemption.
We feared at its inception.
We did not feel prepared to be the heirs of such a terrifying hour.
But within it we found the power to author a new chapter, to offer hope and laughter to ourselves.
So, while once we asked, how could we possibly prevail over catastrophe, now we assert, how could catastrophe possibly prevail over us?
We will not march back to what was, but move to what shall be: a country that is bruised but whole, benevolent but bold, fierce and free.
We will not be turned around or interrupted by intimidation because we know our inaction and inertia will be the inheritance of the next generation, become the future.
Our blunders become their burdens.
But one thing is certain.
If we merge mercy with might, and might with right, then love becomes our legacy and change our children's birthright.
So let us leave behind a country better than the one we were left.
Every breath from my bronze-pounded chest, we will raise this wounded world into a wondrous one.
We will rise from the golden hills of the West.
We will rise from the windswept Northeast where our forefathers first realized revolution.
We will rise from the lake-rimmed cities of the Midwestern states.
We will rise from the sun-baked South.
We will rebuild, reconcile, and recover.
And every known nook of our nation and every corner called our country, our people diverse and beautiful, will emerge battered and beautiful.
When day comes, we step out of the shade aflame and unafraid.
The new dawn blooms as we free it.
For there is always light, if only we're brave enough to see it.
If only we're brave enough to be it.
If you enjoyed this and are interested in more of her works, I definitely recommend her full collection Call Us What We Carry.
When day comes, we ask ourselves, where can we find light in this never-ending shade?
The loss we carry. A sea we must wade.
We braved the belly of the beast.
We've learned that quiet isn't always peace, and the norms and notions of what "just" is isn't always justice.
And yet the dawn is ours before we knew it.
Somehow we do it.
Somehow we weathered and witnessed a nation that isn't broken, but simply unfinished.
We, the successors of a country and a time where a skinny Black girl descended from slaves and raised by a single mother can dream of becoming president, only to find herself reciting for one.
And, yes, we are far from polished, far from pristine, but that doesn't mean we are striving to form a union that is perfect.
We are striving to forge our union with purpose.
To compose a country committed to all cultures, colors, characters and conditions of man.
And so we lift our gaze, not to what stands between us, but what stands before us.
We close the divide because we know to put our future first, we must first put our differences aside.
We lay down our arms so we can reach out our arms to one another.
We seek harm to none and harmony for all.
Let the globe, if nothing else, say this is true.
That even as we grieved, we grew.
That even as we hurt, we hoped.
That even as we tired, we tried.
That we'll forever be tied together, victorious.
Not because we will never again know defeat, but because we will never again sow division.
Scripture tells us to envision that everyone shall sit under their own vine and fig tree, and no one shall make them afraid.
If we're to live up to our own time, then victory won't lie in the blade, but in all the bridges we've made.
That is the promise to glade, the hill we climb, if only we dare.
It's because being American is more than a pride we inherit.
It's the past we step into and how we repair it.
We've seen a force that would shatter our nation, rather than share it.
Would destroy our country if it meant delaying democracy.
And this effort very nearly succeeded.
But while democracy can be periodically delayed, it can never be permanently defeated.
In this truth, in this faith we trust, for while we have our eyes on the future, history has its eyes on us.
This is the era of just redemption.
We feared at its inception.
We did not feel prepared to be the heirs of such a terrifying hour.
But within it we found the power to author a new chapter, to offer hope and laughter to ourselves.
So, while once we asked, how could we possibly prevail over catastrophe, now we assert, how could catastrophe possibly prevail over us?
We will not march back to what was, but move to what shall be: a country that is bruised but whole, benevolent but bold, fierce and free.
We will not be turned around or interrupted by intimidation because we know our inaction and inertia will be the inheritance of the next generation, become the future.
Our blunders become their burdens.
But one thing is certain.
If we merge mercy with might, and might with right, then love becomes our legacy and change our children's birthright.
So let us leave behind a country better than the one we were left.
Every breath from my bronze-pounded chest, we will raise this wounded world into a wondrous one.
We will rise from the golden hills of the West.
We will rise from the windswept Northeast where our forefathers first realized revolution.
We will rise from the lake-rimmed cities of the Midwestern states.
We will rise from the sun-baked South.
We will rebuild, reconcile, and recover.
And every known nook of our nation and every corner called our country, our people diverse and beautiful, will emerge battered and beautiful.
When day comes, we step out of the shade aflame and unafraid.
The new dawn blooms as we free it.
For there is always light, if only we're brave enough to see it.
If only we're brave enough to be it.
If you enjoyed this and are interested in more of her works, I definitely recommend her full collection Call Us What We Carry.
April 25, 2021
My youngest daughter gifted me with this lovely book. Beautifully binded with yellow dust jacket, red lettering, a play on the outfit she wore while reciting this poem at the inauguration..Gorman is so young and so talented.
Some of my favored sentences from the poem.
"That even as we grieved, we grew,
That even as we hurt, we hoped,
That even as we tired, we tried."
Words that could be used in many different setting, but certainly during this past year of Covid, when so many have sickened and died.
"For while we have our eyes on the future,
History has its eyes on us."
How will we measure up?
Some of my favored sentences from the poem.
"That even as we grieved, we grew,
That even as we hurt, we hoped,
That even as we tired, we tried."
Words that could be used in many different setting, but certainly during this past year of Covid, when so many have sickened and died.
"For while we have our eyes on the future,
History has its eyes on us."
How will we measure up?
June 5, 2023
4.5★
From Amanda's Twitter Account.
The complaint;
The complainant thought Oprah was the author (Oprah wrote the foreword) & the complainant didn't even have to fill out her full name.
My understanding is that at this stage, the school has only banned it for elementary school pupils.
While this poem might be challenging for very young children, there is nothing harmful in the ideas it expresses. It is wonderful that a young woman can dream of becoming president of (at the time of writing this) the most powerful nation on earth. The use of language is lovely, yet doesn't gloss over America's past & present problems. I've marked it down just slightly because some lines are a little awkward.
If you want to see Amanda read this poem again;
https://www.townandcountrymag.com/soc...
Edit: & yay for the Streisand Effect. All of Gorman's books are on Amazon best seller lists!
https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/f...
https://wordpress.com/view/carolshess...
From Amanda's Twitter Account.
"One parent could get my poetry banned from classrooms. And yet one country can't ban assault rifles from massacring them."
The complaint;
The complainant thought Oprah was the author (Oprah wrote the foreword) & the complainant didn't even have to fill out her full name.
My understanding is that at this stage, the school has only banned it for elementary school pupils.
While this poem might be challenging for very young children, there is nothing harmful in the ideas it expresses. It is wonderful that a young woman can dream of becoming president of (at the time of writing this) the most powerful nation on earth. The use of language is lovely, yet doesn't gloss over America's past & present problems. I've marked it down just slightly because some lines are a little awkward.
If you want to see Amanda read this poem again;
https://www.townandcountrymag.com/soc...
Edit: & yay for the Streisand Effect. All of Gorman's books are on Amazon best seller lists!
https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/f...
https://wordpress.com/view/carolshess...
April 25, 2021
Oh America, you can do better than this.
The poem is verbose, unimaginative, condescending, self-indulgent, didactic and - what is worst - cliched.
It is understandable that American hearts may need reassurance and guidance after years of darkness and chaos - yes, the poem does provide those.
But if one strips the poem of its envelope of powerful oral delivery, colourful cloths, ethnic jewels, identity politics associated with the author and the specific context of delivery, one is left with a bunch of cliched verses that could be taken straight from a 10th grade assignment: “Write something symbolic and solemn about Thanksgiving Day”.
Everyone is entitled to its own feelings when it is about art. To a lesser extent, everyone is also entitled to its own ideas about art. The dilemma is that when cliched art is celebrated as profound and meaningful, and is made mainstream and institutional by the public endorsement, that means that (political) ideas are also cliched.
It is sadly possible that many Americans might not be terrified that what the nation’s youth poet graduate creates is little different from what an automatic generator of trite expressions and cheap allegory can produce. It will indeed be more troublesome for those same Americans that a new presidential administration which is vehemently underscoring its departure from the dark past uses cliched art to make its message resonate with the people.
The poem is verbose, unimaginative, condescending, self-indulgent, didactic and - what is worst - cliched.
It is understandable that American hearts may need reassurance and guidance after years of darkness and chaos - yes, the poem does provide those.
But if one strips the poem of its envelope of powerful oral delivery, colourful cloths, ethnic jewels, identity politics associated with the author and the specific context of delivery, one is left with a bunch of cliched verses that could be taken straight from a 10th grade assignment: “Write something symbolic and solemn about Thanksgiving Day”.
Everyone is entitled to its own feelings when it is about art. To a lesser extent, everyone is also entitled to its own ideas about art. The dilemma is that when cliched art is celebrated as profound and meaningful, and is made mainstream and institutional by the public endorsement, that means that (political) ideas are also cliched.
It is sadly possible that many Americans might not be terrified that what the nation’s youth poet graduate creates is little different from what an automatic generator of trite expressions and cheap allegory can produce. It will indeed be more troublesome for those same Americans that a new presidential administration which is vehemently underscoring its departure from the dark past uses cliched art to make its message resonate with the people.
February 9, 2021
It's a good thing Harold Bloom is already dead because hearing this poem would have killed him. Gorman's work was an utterly dreadful, cliché-ridden piece of juvenilia that had all the charm and sense of craft as a mediocre slam poem.
January 5, 2022
Review originally published April 29, 2021
I confess I don't read poetry that much, but I am glad I went ahead and read The Hill We Climb: An Inaugural Poem for the Country (2021). Written by the youngest poet yet to give a poetry reading at a presidential inauguration, Amanda Gorman's poem "The Hill We Climb" is powerful, sobering, and uplifting all at the same time.
While critics of the poem pointed out that it was cliché and full of platitudes, I found "The Hill We Climb" communicating deeper, rather than shallower, ideas regarding America's reckoning with its history as we move into the future. I don't disagree with the critics about the presence of platitudes in places, but what did they expect out of a poem given at a ceremony full of pomp and circumstance and patriotic symbolism?
Generally, inaugurations are times of hope, proof that American democracy persists with the peaceful transfer of power between administrations. It's a time for a president to broadcast their big ideas for the nation, with the idea of motivating citizens to step up to the challenge. Moreover, coming after the events of January 6th, the hope that exudes from Gorman's writing despite everything that's gone on lately is something we all could use a little more of these days. No one wants fire and brimstone!
I would imagine it was a difficult balance for Gorman, trying to be both happy and uplifting without missing the sobering and serious nature of America's historical wrongs and their legacy in the present. All in all, I think she navigated this balance wonderfully.
In the present moment, we grapple still with the COVID pandemic and the aftermath of a contentious transition of administrations. Gorman communicates to us in "The Hill We Climb" that we are not a perfect nation, but what matters is that after being knocked down many times, each time we get up and continue the work towards a more perfect union. A message of hopeful resiliency that is a refreshing change of pace.
-Cora
Find this book and other titles within our catalog.
I confess I don't read poetry that much, but I am glad I went ahead and read The Hill We Climb: An Inaugural Poem for the Country (2021). Written by the youngest poet yet to give a poetry reading at a presidential inauguration, Amanda Gorman's poem "The Hill We Climb" is powerful, sobering, and uplifting all at the same time.
While critics of the poem pointed out that it was cliché and full of platitudes, I found "The Hill We Climb" communicating deeper, rather than shallower, ideas regarding America's reckoning with its history as we move into the future. I don't disagree with the critics about the presence of platitudes in places, but what did they expect out of a poem given at a ceremony full of pomp and circumstance and patriotic symbolism?
Generally, inaugurations are times of hope, proof that American democracy persists with the peaceful transfer of power between administrations. It's a time for a president to broadcast their big ideas for the nation, with the idea of motivating citizens to step up to the challenge. Moreover, coming after the events of January 6th, the hope that exudes from Gorman's writing despite everything that's gone on lately is something we all could use a little more of these days. No one wants fire and brimstone!
I would imagine it was a difficult balance for Gorman, trying to be both happy and uplifting without missing the sobering and serious nature of America's historical wrongs and their legacy in the present. All in all, I think she navigated this balance wonderfully.
In the present moment, we grapple still with the COVID pandemic and the aftermath of a contentious transition of administrations. Gorman communicates to us in "The Hill We Climb" that we are not a perfect nation, but what matters is that after being knocked down many times, each time we get up and continue the work towards a more perfect union. A message of hopeful resiliency that is a refreshing change of pace.
-Cora
Find this book and other titles within our catalog.
December 10, 2022
I was one of millions around the world who hadn’t heard of Gorman before she performed this poem at Biden’s inauguration. And it was more of a performance than a reading. It’s good on the page, but better if you can see and hear her, even if only from memory. Watch it, HERE, and if that doesn’t work for you, search YouTube or Google.
Image: Gorman at the inauguration (Source)
You need to read or watch the whole poem, but here are my favourite lines:
“We’ve learned that quiet isn’t always peace,
And the norms and notions of what ‘just is’
Isn’t always justice.”
...
“That even as we grieved, we grew,
That even as we hurt, we hoped,
That even as we tired, we tried.”
...
“For there is always light,
If only we’re brave enough to see it,
If only we’re brave enough to be it.”
I went on to read her new collection, Call Us What We Carry, which I reviewed HERE, with general comments about her style and themes.
Image: Gorman at the inauguration (Source)
You need to read or watch the whole poem, but here are my favourite lines:
“We’ve learned that quiet isn’t always peace,
And the norms and notions of what ‘just is’
Isn’t always justice.”
...
“That even as we grieved, we grew,
That even as we hurt, we hoped,
That even as we tired, we tried.”
...
“For there is always light,
If only we’re brave enough to see it,
If only we’re brave enough to be it.”
I went on to read her new collection, Call Us What We Carry, which I reviewed HERE, with general comments about her style and themes.
April 23, 2021
Let's face it: No one needed this formulaic foreword by Oprah, but the poem and its delivery are GREAT.
April 6, 2021
Oscar Wilde once remarked wickedly that poetry fared well until the public became interested in it. I am hard pushed to understand how anyone could mistake this collection of cliches and flaccid lines for poetry.
May 25, 2023
"There is always light, if only we're brave enough to see it. If only we're brave enough to be it." -Amanda Gorman
This beautiful, inspirational poem, by the immensely talented Amanda Gorman, was the perfect way to close the door on one of the darkest periods in U.S. history.
Amanda's recitation of this poem at the Presidential inauguration left my whole family in tears. Personally, I was so happy to see the emergence of this wonderful new role model for my daughter, at the same time that we swore in our first female vice president. Truly a moment to remember forever.
Now let's all hope we can live up to the ideals set forth by Amanda at this turning point in history.
This beautiful, inspirational poem, by the immensely talented Amanda Gorman, was the perfect way to close the door on one of the darkest periods in U.S. history.
Amanda's recitation of this poem at the Presidential inauguration left my whole family in tears. Personally, I was so happy to see the emergence of this wonderful new role model for my daughter, at the same time that we swore in our first female vice president. Truly a moment to remember forever.
Now let's all hope we can live up to the ideals set forth by Amanda at this turning point in history.
July 26, 2021
"We will not march back to what was,
But move on to what shall be:
A country that is bruised but whole,
Benevolent but bold,
Fierce and free."
I watched Amanda performing this at the inauguration and was absolutely blown away. Reading the words months later in a book itself was a spectacular experience too. (If you haven't seen Amanda speaking at the ceremony, go fix that!!! It's really too good.)
And I am even more excited to read her debut poetry collection. Her way with words is so powerful and soothing. (And the USA has a loooooong way to go with practicing democracy, but this poem definitely comforted me.)
But move on to what shall be:
A country that is bruised but whole,
Benevolent but bold,
Fierce and free."
I watched Amanda performing this at the inauguration and was absolutely blown away. Reading the words months later in a book itself was a spectacular experience too. (If you haven't seen Amanda speaking at the ceremony, go fix that!!! It's really too good.)
And I am even more excited to read her debut poetry collection. Her way with words is so powerful and soothing. (And the USA has a loooooong way to go with practicing democracy, but this poem definitely comforted me.)
August 23, 2021
Wonderful!
July 4, 2022
Very worthy for Independence Day weekend... I remember her recitation at the inauguration and how moved I was then... an important young voice, I hope she publishes more!
September 30, 2021
September 30,2021 Re-read
:
I listened to the audiobook while reading this book. To be honest, I didn't really care for Oprah's foreward and personally preferred Gorman's reading at the inauguration over the reading from the audiobook version.
However, the more I read this, the more I realized that the reason why I like Amanda Gorman's poetry so much is because it's easy to read and understand, while maintaining great rhythm and lyricism. The writing is also just so beautiful! I can't get enough of Amanda Gorman.
January 20, 2021 Review :
I've never watched any of the past US inaugurations, but when Amanda Gorman shared the glorious news that she was selected as the official inaugural poet for the 2021 inauguration, I knew I had to tune in (and I did)!
If you haven't watched it, you can find it here.
I've been following Gorman in social media since last summer and (for some reason) feel immensely proud of her well-deserved fame and success and am super happy that all three of her books ( Change Sings - a picture book set to release later this year, The Hill We Climb - the collection of poems under the same title as this one, as well as The Hill We Climb: An Inaugural Poem for the Country ) took the top three spots on the Amazon bestseller list!
We've braved the belly of the beast.
We've learned that quiet isn't always peace,
And the norms and notions of what "just is"
Isn't always justice.
I listened to the audiobook while reading this book. To be honest, I didn't really care for Oprah's foreward and personally preferred Gorman's reading at the inauguration over the reading from the audiobook version.
However, the more I read this, the more I realized that the reason why I like Amanda Gorman's poetry so much is because it's easy to read and understand, while maintaining great rhythm and lyricism. The writing is also just so beautiful! I can't get enough of Amanda Gorman.
January 20, 2021 Review :
I've never watched any of the past US inaugurations, but when Amanda Gorman shared the glorious news that she was selected as the official inaugural poet for the 2021 inauguration, I knew I had to tune in (and I did)!
If you haven't watched it, you can find it here.
I've been following Gorman in social media since last summer and (for some reason) feel immensely proud of her well-deserved fame and success and am super happy that all three of her books ( Change Sings - a picture book set to release later this year, The Hill We Climb - the collection of poems under the same title as this one, as well as The Hill We Climb: An Inaugural Poem for the Country ) took the top three spots on the Amazon bestseller list!
April 14, 2022
Like so many people, I have watched Amanda Gorman during the inauguration, and her speaking this poem was so amazing. Reading it, with the different but nice format used, is wonderful too. With The Hill We Climb you have an awesome poem full of hope for a better future without hiding the past.
5 out of 5 stars
5 out of 5 stars
June 8, 2021
I borrowed this audiobook thinking it was a book of poetry but as it turns out, just the one poem was more than enough. Despite the unnecessary forward by Oprah, this reading of the Inaugural Poem by the author was stunning. It brought me to tears. 5 stars
April 2, 2021
Truly inspirational and uplifting. Amanda's words breathe life and hope in my heart and hopefully yours too.
April 1, 2021
Nei momenti di buio, quando l'irreparabile incombe e sembra che non resti altro da fare che arrendersi all'ineluttabile, come se non ci fosse altro da fare, perché l'angoscia e la disperazione hanno sprangato le porte alla speranza, alla vita, alla luce.
Quando la NONVITA trionfa, nel buio pesto della notte senza stelle, dove "c'è solo pianto e stridore di denti", ecco che si erge una voce limpida, cristallina che come raggio di sole squarcia "l'ombra senza fine".
È la voce di Amanda Gorman, che con tutta la sua forza ha parlato durante l'insediamento del presidente Joe Biden, il 20 gennaio 2021
“Nasce il giorno e ci chiediamo:
Dove trovare la luce
In quest’ombra senza fine?
La perdita che portiamo, un mare da guadare.
Abbiamo sfidato il ventre della bestia,
Appreso che la calma non è sempre pace,
E che le regole e opinioni del «così è»
Non sempre sono giustizia.”
E allora apriamo i nostri cuori alla Speranza.
Alziamo lo sguardo per permetterci di farlo posare non su ciò che ci divide, ma su ciò che è davanti a noi. E aggiungo, non su chi è davanti, ma su chi è a fianco, per capire che le differenze non sono segni di divisione, ma sono fonte di ricchezza e di arricchimento.
"Deponiamo le armi
Per armarci di premura gli uni
verso gli altri
Di nessuno vogliamo il male, per tutti l'armonia."
Deponiamo le armi, sì, per armarci di cura, sotto il cielo dell'armonia.
Se sapremo prenderci cura allora saremo in grado di superare l'interesse particolare a favore del bene collettivo.
Il virus Sars-Cov2 ci sta imponendo questa lezione.
Chissà se avremo abbastanza cuore e cura per apprenderla.
Noi siamo ciò che costruiamo.
Noi siamo molto più della somma delle singole parti.
Noi siamo le relazioni che scegliamo di avere.
Noi siamo la visione che saremo in grado di donarci.
"E se prima chiedevamo: Come potremmo
avere la meglio sulla catastrofe?
Ora affermiamo: Come potrebbe la catastrofe
avere la meglio su di noi?"
"Ma una cosa è certa:
Se alla compassione uniamo la forza, e alla forza
la ragione,
L'amore sarà il nostro retaggio,
E il cambiamento, un diritto per i nostri figli."
Quando la NONVITA trionfa, nel buio pesto della notte senza stelle, dove "c'è solo pianto e stridore di denti", ecco che si erge una voce limpida, cristallina che come raggio di sole squarcia "l'ombra senza fine".
È la voce di Amanda Gorman, che con tutta la sua forza ha parlato durante l'insediamento del presidente Joe Biden, il 20 gennaio 2021
“Nasce il giorno e ci chiediamo:
Dove trovare la luce
In quest’ombra senza fine?
La perdita che portiamo, un mare da guadare.
Abbiamo sfidato il ventre della bestia,
Appreso che la calma non è sempre pace,
E che le regole e opinioni del «così è»
Non sempre sono giustizia.”
E allora apriamo i nostri cuori alla Speranza.
Alziamo lo sguardo per permetterci di farlo posare non su ciò che ci divide, ma su ciò che è davanti a noi. E aggiungo, non su chi è davanti, ma su chi è a fianco, per capire che le differenze non sono segni di divisione, ma sono fonte di ricchezza e di arricchimento.
"Deponiamo le armi
Per armarci di premura gli uni
verso gli altri
Di nessuno vogliamo il male, per tutti l'armonia."
Deponiamo le armi, sì, per armarci di cura, sotto il cielo dell'armonia.
Se sapremo prenderci cura allora saremo in grado di superare l'interesse particolare a favore del bene collettivo.
Il virus Sars-Cov2 ci sta imponendo questa lezione.
Chissà se avremo abbastanza cuore e cura per apprenderla.
Noi siamo ciò che costruiamo.
Noi siamo molto più della somma delle singole parti.
Noi siamo le relazioni che scegliamo di avere.
Noi siamo la visione che saremo in grado di donarci.
"E se prima chiedevamo: Come potremmo
avere la meglio sulla catastrofe?
Ora affermiamo: Come potrebbe la catastrofe
avere la meglio su di noi?"
"Ma una cosa è certa:
Se alla compassione uniamo la forza, e alla forza
la ragione,
L'amore sarà il nostro retaggio,
E il cambiamento, un diritto per i nostri figli."
April 21, 2021
This is an exceptional poem - modern and contemporary in the best sense of the word. Rhythmic without strict metre or rhyme schemes. Full of powerful images despite a very clear, sober language.
July 17, 2021
This is possibly the most moving piece of poetry I have ever heard.
I'm not an American, but on inauguration day I found myself in awe of this young Black girl with the hands of a dancer and the heart of a woman forced to be much wiser than her years. I found myself in tears.
Amanda Gorman's spirit moved me then, and it moved me once again while listening to this audiobook.
I can only hope that America, and the world, can live up to the potential of this young woman's words.
Words that soar so seamlessly into our hearts, giving them wings to fly.
"For there is always light, if only we’re brave enough to see it.
If only we’re brave enough to be it.”
VIDEO REVIEW: https://youtu.be/38cwhWXXnds
You can find me on...
Youtube | Instagram | Twitter
Thank you to Libro.fm for providing an ALC of The Hill We Climb.
I'm not an American, but on inauguration day I found myself in awe of this young Black girl with the hands of a dancer and the heart of a woman forced to be much wiser than her years. I found myself in tears.
Amanda Gorman's spirit moved me then, and it moved me once again while listening to this audiobook.
I can only hope that America, and the world, can live up to the potential of this young woman's words.
Words that soar so seamlessly into our hearts, giving them wings to fly.
"For there is always light, if only we’re brave enough to see it.
If only we’re brave enough to be it.”
VIDEO REVIEW: https://youtu.be/38cwhWXXnds
You can find me on...
Youtube | Instagram | Twitter
Thank you to Libro.fm for providing an ALC of The Hill We Climb.
January 19, 2023
THIS. IS. SO. GOOD.
Powerful. Changemaker. Astonishing.
Thanks to Libro.FM for the ALCs for this one.
Powerful. Changemaker. Astonishing.
Thanks to Libro.FM for the ALCs for this one.
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January 29, 2023I'm not going to rate this, this has just been sitting in my Libro.fm app unlistened to, and I thought that it would be nice to have a refresher of what made this such a good poem at Joey's inauguration... and I have to admit that it didn't hit quite as hard...
Also Oprah... that introduction? I know she a billionaire now, but that was just very lazy work. It's giving she wrote it on a cocktail napkin after she and Gayle got back from a hike around Oprah's garden.
Also Oprah... that introduction? I know she a billionaire now, but that was just very lazy work. It's giving she wrote it on a cocktail napkin after she and Gayle got back from a hike around Oprah's garden.
April 9, 2021
I enjoy reading Ms Gorman's poem as much as I did hearing it the first time at the inauguration. Brilliant, not just considering her young age.
January 21, 2021
Breathtaking. I watched this performed live along with my husband and child, and we all wept openly. Cannot wait to read more from this brilliant mind!
April 16, 2021
Listened to the audiobook, because I needed a reminder that there is hope even though there is so much tragedy. Sigh. It’s a great poem, and a great listen. Maybe not the same chills I had when I first heard it, but the power and the memory of the day are there!
“Quiet isn't always peace and the norms and notions of what just is isn't always justice.”
**Audio copy downloaded from Libro.fm proceeds helping Loyalty Bookstores.
“Quiet isn't always peace and the norms and notions of what just is isn't always justice.”
**Audio copy downloaded from Libro.fm proceeds helping Loyalty Bookstores.
August 9, 2021
Schön, dass der Text zweisprachig veröffentlicht wurde, insbesondere dass einige der sprachlichen Bilder erläutert werden. So strahlt neben der hilfreichen, aber gelegentlich holprigen, kühleren Übersetzung das Original.
October 20, 2021
“We’ve seen a force that would shatter our nation, rather than share it.
Would destroy our country if it meant delaying democracy.
And this effort very nearly succeeded.
But while democracy can be periodically delayed, it can never be permanently defeated.”
Would destroy our country if it meant delaying democracy.
And this effort very nearly succeeded.
But while democracy can be periodically delayed, it can never be permanently defeated.”
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