What one seems to want in art, in experiencing it, is the same thing that is necessary for its creation, a self-forgetful, perfectly useless concentration. Elizabeth Bishop More Quotes by Elizabeth Bishop More Quotes From Elizabeth Bishop Being a poet is one of the unhealthier jobs--no regular hours, so many temptations! Elizabeth Bishop temptation writing jobs All my life I have lived and behaved very much like the sandpiper - just running down the edges of different countries and continents, 'looking for something'. Elizabeth Bishop running country travel If after I read a poem the world looks like that poem for 24 hours or so I'm sure it's a good one—and the same goes for paintings. Elizabeth Bishop painting looks world Hoping to live days of greater happiness, I forget that days of less happiness are passing by. Elizabeth Bishop passing-by passings forget Close, close all night the lovers keep. They turn together in their sleep, Close as two pages in a book that read each other in the dark. Each knows all the other knows, learned by heart from head to toes. Elizabeth Bishop sleep heart book The art of losing isn't hard to master; so many things seem filled with the intent to be lost that their loss is no disaster. Elizabeth Bishop sunset loss art Democracy in the contemporary world demands, among other things, an educated and informed people. Elizabeth Bishop women democracy people I am overcome by my own amazing sloth...Can you please forgive me and believe that it is really because I want to do something well that I don't do it at all? Elizabeth Bishop forgive-me sloth believe Why shouldn't we, so generally addicted to the gigantic, at last have some small works of art, some short poems, short pieces of music [...], some intimate, low-voiced, and delicate things in our mostly huge and roaring, glaring world? Elizabeth Bishop delicate-things roaring art Sometimes it seemsas though only intelligent people are stupid enough to fall in love & only stupid people are intelligent enough to let themselves be loved. Elizabeth Bishop falling-in-love intelligent stupid I am in need of music that would flow Over my fretful, feeling finger-tips, Over my bitter-tainted, trembling lips, With melody, deep, clear, and liquid-slow. Oh, for the healing swaying, old and low, Of some song sung to rest the tired dead, A song to fall like water on my head, And over quivering limbs, dream flushed to glow! There is a magic made by melody: A spell of rest, and quiet breath, and cool Heart, that sinks through fading colors deep To the subaqueous stillness of the sea, And floats forever in a moon-green pool, Held in the arms of rhythm and of sleep. Elizabeth Bishop dream song fall Lose something every day. Accept the fluster of lost door keys, the hour badly spent. The art of losing isn't hard to master. Elizabeth Bishop keys doors art There are some people whom we envy not because they are rich or handsome or successful, although they may be all or any of these, but because everything they are or do seems to be all of a piece, so that even if they wanted to they could not be or do otherwise. Elizabeth Bishop envy success people All the untidyactivity continues, awful but cheerful. Elizabeth Bishop cheerful awful Something needn't be large to be good. Elizabeth Bishop be-good I caught a tremendous fish Elizabeth Bishop filled-up orange fighting Oh, must we dream our dreams and have them, too? Elizabeth Bishop our-dreams dream But he sleeps on the top of his mast with his eyes closed tight. The gull inquired into his dream, which was, "I must not fall. The spangled sea below wants me to fall. It is hard as diamonds; it wants to destroy us all. Elizabeth Bishop dream sleep fall It is like what we imagine knowledge to be: dark, salt, clear, moving, utterly free. Elizabeth Bishop salt dark moving Heaven is not like flying or swimming, but has something to do with blackness and a strong glare. Elizabeth Bishop swimming strong heaven
