To be loved by a madwoman

Song of Patience

This lives with me now. Leonard Cohen’s first book, printed originally in 400 copies and out-of-print for a long time, now reprinted exactly as it was back then.

I read it in one gulp yesterday, and

yes, I cried. I felt as if something had been released from my chest for the rest of the evening.

I slept with it last night next to me. I often sleep with a few of my books, like some strange bohemian scholar asleep at her work. It’s comforting to know they are just right there.

The quote in the title, as noted, is from “Song of Patience”, but this one, “Prayer for Messiah”, is my favorite. It took my breath away. I copied it out in my commonplace book, I felt like I needed to, and I’ll read it for you here.

He wrote that when he was 22.