I live my life in widening rings

I live my life in widening rings

which spread out to cover everything.

I may not complete the last one,

but I’ll surely try:

I’m circling around God, around the ancient tower,

and I’ve been circling for thousands of years—

and I don’t yet know:  am I a falcon, a storm,

or a vast song . . . .

Rainer Maria Rilke, Prayers of a Young Poet, translated and introduced by Mark S. Burrows

   (Brewster, MA:  Paraclete Press, forthcoming in October, 2012), 2.