The Secret of Life: Henry Miller

"Anyone who is interested in the secret of a thing is obsessed by that thing and thereby puts it beyond his grasp. The man who is in life and alive is not interested in the secret of life. A man who is interested in the secret of life is already dead. Of course it is easier for us to believe we are immortal; men have had this belief for thousands of years. They will continue to have this belief for thousands of years to come. There is nothing strange about it, nor is there anything strange about their holding the notion of mortality at the same time. The duality of man's nature is an ineluctable quality of man's consciousness; it is only the thinker that is absurd enough to try and argue it away."

Henry Miller, from The Hamlet Letters, #18, September 7, 1937

Thanks once again to Ed Baker for pointing the way.



This week's featured poem comes from Lilliput Review #88, a broadside issue entitled "Trimmed Lamps and Kerosene Barrels" by the inimitable Richard Houff. Enjoy.

Personal Styles In Neurosis

When you observe it,
look well within yourself.
Take notice, that all living
things have their fulfillment.
In the light, if you appear colder
than death, remember: you're a rock;
and I've been kind enough
to grant you an audience.

Richard Houff

And the master of the house:







the nightingale's secret--
the rubbish heap
is a luxury

Issa
translated by David G. Lanoue

best,
Don