Poems of C.S. Lewis (LFW Retreat)

Back to series
By Lyle Dorsett on May 11, 2022 ,

A Confession

Click here to open a Prin-Friendly PDF for more Poems.

I am so coarse, the things the poets see
Are obstinately invisible to me.
For twenty years I've stared my level best
To see if evening-any evening-would suggest
A patient etherized upon a table;
In vain. I simply wasn't able.
To me each evening looked far more
Like the departure from a silent, yet a crowded, shore
Of a ship whose freight was everything, leaving behind
Gracefully, finally, without farewells, marooned mankind.
Red dawn behind a hedgerow in the east
Never, for me, resembled in the least
A chillblain on a cocktail-shaker's nose;
Waterfalls don't remind me of torn underclothes,
Nor glaciers of tin-cans. I've never known
The moon look like a hump-backed crone-
Rather, a prodigy, even now
Not naturalized, a riddle glaring from the Cyclops' brow

Lyle Dorsett

Professor, Senior Fellow for Spiritual Formation, CSLI Lyle Dorsett, Professor, holds the Billy Graham Chair of Evangelism at Beeson Divinity School in Samford University. He taught courses in evangelism, spiritual formation and church history. He also serves as the pastor of Christ the King Anglican Church in Homewood, Alabama. Lyle received his PhD in American history and has published numerous books, including several Christian biographies and three works on C. S. Lewis.  

COPYRIGHT: This publication is published by C.S. Lewis Institute; 8001 Braddock Road, Suite 301; Springfield, VA 22151. Portions of the publication may be reproduced for noncommercial, local church or ministry use without prior permission. Electronic copies of the PDF files may be duplicated and transmitted via e-mail for personal and church use. Articles may not be modified without prior written permission of the Institute. For questions, contact the Institute: 703.914.5602 or email us.

0 All Booked 0.00 All Booked 0.00 All Booked 24770 GLOBAL EVENT: From Gold Medalist to God’s Missionary (Eric Liddell), 8:00PM ET https://www.cslewisinstitute.org/?event=global-event-from-gold-medalist-to-gods-missionary-eric-liddell-800pm-et&event_date=2025-06-13&reg=1 https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr 2025-06-13
Next coming event
Days
Hours
Minutes
Seconds

GLOBAL EVENT: From Gold Medalist to God’s Missionary (Eric Liddell), 8:00PM ET

On June 13, 2025 at 8:00 pm
Register

Special Issue: Seeking Dietrich Bonhoeffer

Full details Get Directions

Print your tickets