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Mark Sebring

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The Waters of Lethe
by Mark Sebring → (All Poetry by Mark Sebring)
Tuesday, October 9, 2018    Rated "G" by the Author.
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Poem Artwork

 
 
Life is a precious thing,
filled with beauty, wonder, pleasure and love.
But it's also fraught with frustration and strife,
and sometimes the struggle leaves us weary.
It's then that Thanatos, the cunning adversary,
beckons us, beguiles us, persuades us to give up the fight,
tempts us with promises of peace,
entices us with dreams of a sleep without dreams.
Apatheia, Serenity, Oblivion, the perfect pathways to peace.
The one way to avoid disappointment:
to learn to accept despair.
But it's a short walk from Apatheia to Apathy,
a well-worn path from Serenity to Oblivion,
and like the temporal dimension,
that path only flows in one direction:
toward the one ultimate oblivion,
away from the struggles and pleasures of life.
So, as you consider the pleasures of life,
remember that struggle is part of the deal.
And take care when you find yourself longing for oblivion.
 

Mark Sebring (2013)




 


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 Reviews of "The Waters of Lethe"
Reviewed by Mark Sebring
Reviewed on February 22, 2021
Τα Νερά της Λήθης

I've come to rely on the Waters of Lethe.
My simple substitute for intimacy.
A secret place where I can hide.
The next best thing to suicide.

"Give me the Waters of Lethe
that numb the heart, if they exist.
I will still not have the power
to forget you."
Ovid

"Sitting in the dark with a drink in his hand, killing himself slowly."
We think we want serenity, but what we really want is oblivion.


"It's a short walk from Apatheia to Apathy,
a well-worn path from Serenity to Oblivion."
Τα Νερά της Λήθης (The Waters of Lethe)

"His panacea apatheia inevitably evolves into apathy."
Carmen Cygni (Swan Song)

One of the messages of this poem is:
In times of desperation (when our power is stripped from us)
Apatheia (the serenity to accept the things we cannot change)
eventually evolves into Apathy.
"What is called resignation is confirmed desperation."

"I'll spend the day with the one I love
and care little for anything else."
Reflections of a Hermit 🧙🏻‍♂️


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