A poem on teaching from Sister Maura
After Diane Scharper wrote her appreciation of Sister Maura Eichner, who taught for many years at The College of Notre Dame of Maryland and died at age 94, some readers asked for the sister's poem, “What My Teachers Taught Me, I Try to Teach My Students.” Here it is (with thanks to the college for providing it):
A bird in the hand/is not to be desired
In writing, nothing/is too much trouble.
Culture is nourished, not/by fact, but by myth.
Continually think of those/who were truly great
who in their lives fought/for life, who wore
at their hearts, the fire's/center. Feel the meanings
the words hide. Make routine/a stimulus. Remember
it can cease. Forge/hosannahs from doubt.
Hammer on doors with the heart/All occasions invite God's
mercies and all times/are his seasons.
Comments
The blend of irony, work ethic, and spiritual sensibility make this one of my favorite poems. Sr. Maura hated maudlin sentiments in writing. How like her to weave musings about birds in the hand with a meditation on God.
Posted by: Diane Scharper | November 28, 2009 9:05 AM
Interesting that "I think sontinually of those who were truly great " is a line by the British poet, Stephen Spender- not that she had to credit it.
Posted by: david eberhardt | November 30, 2009 8:29 AM