Patience
by: Kay Ryan
Patience is
wider than one
once envisioned,
with ribbons
of rivers
and distant
ranges and
tasks undertaken
and finished
with modest
relish by
natives in their
native dress.
Who would
have guessed
it possible
that waiting
is sustainable—
a place with
its own harvests.
Or that in
time's fullness
the diamonds
of patience
couldn't be
distinguished
from the genuine
in brilliance
or hardness.
Kay Ryan is one of the best America poets because of her rhyming scheme that gives great meanings to her poems. Most of her poems take years in making for they are both quizzical and philosophical. She has a unique way of writing her poems, and anyone can see that from the patern of imagery she uses. She barely ever has patterns in the beginning, the images build up, and so do the emotions which makes the reader connect with the poem and follow through easier. She has won many awards such as the Union League Poetry Prize and the Maurice English Poetry Award, and the
Ruth Lilly Poetry Prize.
This poem caught my attention just by the title, because even though I do have patience, I still have a bit of a quick temper. I can connect withwhat she is saying, because when I am patient, I see that things don'tturn out as bad as they would have if I didn't approach a situation calmly. "Who would have guessed it possible that waiting is sustainable—a place with its own harvests." I like this line because it popped out at me. Most people think that it's better to take action as soon as you can, but Kay Ryan is saying that it's actually a lot better if you wait. That "time" is the main"harvest" or award. And I agre with that, for things dot end to be better when you wait.
