Thoughts and Feelings
William Blake is a hard man to understand. His art represents beauty,
power, loneliness, and any number of ideas, thoughts, and feelings. It is
his words that are representations of something wholly other. This journal
is a compilation of thoughts and interpretations of Blake's words. There are
no definite answers or simple symbols in Blake's poetry, or his art for that
matter. Blake is an enigma. There are entries in this journal about what
Blake is trying to say in certain poems. I am never sure if what I wrote was
entirely accurate but I laid my thoughts down on paper just the same.
The Book of Thel, the first book of Blake's poetry that I wrote a journal
on, was the hardest of the journals to compose. Before joining English 332 I
had little or no contact with William Blake. When reading the Book of Thel,
his pantheon of gods and symbols confused me. I was forced to wade through
his poetry like it was a thick fog surrounding my brain. I have burned away a
small bit of the fog but sometimes I run into a huge bank of it.
I like William Blake. At first, since I could not understand what his
words were trying to convey, I did not. It has taken me half a semester to
learn that Blake had political meaning behind his words and art. I did not
know that before. I just thought he had some serious fantasies and played
them out on paper or with etchings. I think this journal is a journey of
discovery for me. In the beginning my confusion shows, blatantly. Towards
the end of the journal my respect makes itself evident.
This journal not only interprets Blake and his works for me, but
clarifies why he wrote, etched, and painted. Not all the journals are
complete in my estimation. They hare only preliminary thoughts on paper,
like sketches of my thoughts. The deep thinking about Blake occurred in class
discussion but are not truly chronicled in my journal. Perhaps one day I
might sit down and truly try to figure out Blake for myself. For now, here
is my journal.
Accompanied with this journal is my poem and etching I completed for this
class. The initial drawing for my etching is where I drew my inspiration for
my poem. I went into the engraving workshop on that first Sunday without a
clue as to what I was going to draw. I couldn't think of anything to draw or
to write so I turned to what inspired me: music. I put on my headphones and
listened to the song, "Now We Are Free". It's a beautiful song in Italian
about being free and going home. To me home is everything. I only have to
close my eyes to picture it, its so easy to see because I am surrounded by
love whenever I am home. The song reminded me of fairies strangely enough so
I decided to draw one. As drawing is not in my list of talents, the picture
I came up with isn't what I pictured but I have to work with my limitations.
Anyway, I drew the fairy and etched in words on her wings, in the mountains
behind her, the wind surrounding her, and on the ground beneath her feet. To
me the fairy is my mom guiding me home, she is my one true angel that I know
will always be with me. The poem has a few words in it that are found in the
etching and final watercolor. The poem represents what the fairy says to me
in my dreams. She leads me home.
I am within you,
All around you.
I am the air you breathe
And the wind that caresses your skin.
I clear your path before you
And I am the road you walk upon.
I am faceless in the shadows,
Because it is your face that I wear.
We are one.
I protect you and you live for me.
Home and heart,
Love and Sorrow;
We share them all.
I am comfort and pain,
I know them through you.
What you cannot Cherish, I cherish.
What you cannot feel, I know.
I am your guardian and I still your fear.
When the sun warms your heart
It is my smile upon you.
When grief divides your mind
I touch your soul and soothe the pain.
It is not enough to live alone.
I surround you, am all about you.
Never look for me, know that I am there.
What is life without Love?
Trust me.
Trust that my wings will enfold you
In times of need.
We are never alone,
Look about you,
Breathe me in.
Believe.