Clifton: ‘Sorrow Song’

 As I watched the news of the Russians bombing a shelter for Ukrainian children, I thought about Lucille Clifton’s poem “Sorrow Song.” It’s a poem about the eyes of children who watched from the Middle Passage, Buchenwald, Nagasaki …

staring at us, amazed to see

the extraordinary evil in

ordinary men.

I think people who live in democratic societies must keep up with the news. I also think that people who keep up with the news nonstop drive themselves crazy.

If you sense the contradiction, the way out, I’d suggest, is in the word “enough.” We Americans are taught to want more. Always more.

The better way is to find some balance: to find a way to take in the news without letting it overwhelm your life. I like reading the morning newspapers, rather than staying on top of the news nonstop.

But I also think it helps, especially at times like these, to read the poets. If you are feeling overwhelmed by the tragedy of this war, put the news aside for a while and read a good poet.