<html><head><meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=us-ascii"></head><body style="word-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; line-break: after-white-space;" class=""><div class=""><font class=""><div class=""><div class=""><div class=""><div class="aolReplacedBody" style="word-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; line-break: after-white-space;"><div class="" style="margin: 0px; line-height: normal;"><div class="" style="margin: 0px; line-height: normal;"><font color="#232323" size="5" class=""><span style="caret-color: rgb(35, 35, 35);" class="">You are cordially invited to join us for an Oral Tradition Poetry Salon</span></font></div><div class="" style="margin: 0px; line-height: normal;"><font color="#232323" face="arial, helvetica" size="2" class=""><span style="caret-color: rgb(35, 35, 35);" class=""><br class=""></span></font></div><div class="" style="margin: 0px; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: 36px;" class=""><b class="">Sweet Darkness</b></span></div><div class="" style="margin: 0px; line-height: normal;"><font color="#232323" face="arial, helvetica" size="2" class=""><span style="caret-color: rgb(35, 35, 35);" class=""><br class=""></span></font></div><div class="" style="margin: 0px; line-height: normal;"><font color="#232323" size="5" class=""><span style="caret-color: rgb(35, 35, 35);" class="">Saturday, November 10</span></font></div><div class="" style="margin: 0px; line-height: normal;"><font color="#232323" size="5" class=""><span style="caret-color: rgb(35, 35, 35);" class=""><br class=""></span></font></div><div class="" style="margin: 0px; line-height: normal;"><font color="#232323" size="5" class=""><span style="caret-color: rgb(35, 35, 35);" class="">7:00 PM</span></font></div><div class="" style="margin: 0px; line-height: normal;"><font color="#232323" size="5" class=""><span style="caret-color: rgb(35, 35, 35);" class=""><br class=""></span></font></div><div class="" style="margin: 0px; line-height: normal;"><font color="#232323" size="5" class=""><span style="caret-color: rgb(35, 35, 35);" class="">at the home of Larry Robinson and Cynthia Kishi</span></font></div><div class="" style="margin: 0px; line-height: normal;"><font color="#232323" size="5" class=""><span style="caret-color: rgb(35, 35, 35);" class="">460 Eleanor Ave., Sebastopol</span></font></div><div class="" style="margin: 0px; line-height: normal;"><font color="#232323" size="5" class=""><span style="caret-color: rgb(35, 35, 35);" class=""><br class=""></span></font></div><div class="" style="margin: 0px; line-height: normal;"><font color="#232323" size="5" class=""><span style="caret-color: rgb(35, 35, 35);" class="">Seating is limited; to reserve a space, please send a message to Lrobpoet@son<a href="http://ic.net" class="">ic.net</a> with the name(s) of the people who will occupy the seats. </span></font></div><div class="" style="margin: 0px; line-height: normal;"><font color="#232323" size="5" class=""><span style="caret-color: rgb(35, 35, 35);" class=""><br class=""></span></font></div><div class="" style="margin: 0px; line-height: normal;"><font color="#232323" size="5" class=""><span style="caret-color: rgb(35, 35, 35);" class="">(I will not be able to respond to RSVPs until tomorrow; thank you for your patience. In the event that the salon fills before you can reply, I will put you on the waiting list and let you know as we get cancellations.)</span></font></div><div class="" style="margin: 0px; line-height: normal;"><font color="#232323" face="arial, helvetica" size="2" class=""><span style="caret-color: rgb(35, 35, 35);" class=""><br class=""></span></font></div><div class="" style="margin: 0px; line-height: normal;"><font color="#232323" face="arial, helvetica" size="2" class=""><span style="caret-color: rgb(35, 35, 35);" class=""><br class=""></span></font></div><div class="" style="margin: 0px; line-height: normal;"><font color="#232323" face="arial, helvetica" size="2" class=""><span style="caret-color: rgb(35, 35, 35);" class=""><br class=""></span></font></div><div class="" style="margin: 0px; line-height: normal;"><div style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;" class="">Sweet Darkness</div><div style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; min-height: 22px;" class=""><br class=""></div><div style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;" class="">When your eyes are tired</div><div style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;" class="">the world is tired also.</div><div style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; min-height: 22px;" class=""><br class=""></div><div style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;" class="">When your vision has gone</div><div style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;" class="">no part of the world can find you.</div><div style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;" class="">Time to go into the dark</div><div style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;" class="">where the night has eyes</div><div style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;" class="">to recognize its own.</div><div style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; min-height: 22px;" class=""><br class=""></div><div style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;" class="">There you can be sure </div><div style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;" class="">you are not beyond love.</div><div style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;" class="">The dark will be your womb</div><div style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;" class="">tonight.</div><div style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;" class="">The night will give you a horizon</div><div style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;" class="">further than you can see.</div><div style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; min-height: 22px;" class=""><br class=""></div><div style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;" class="">You must learn one thing.</div><div style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;" class="">The world was made to be free in.</div><div style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; min-height: 22px;" class=""><br class=""></div><div style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;" class="">Give up all the other worlds</div><div style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;" class="">except the one to which you belong.</div><div style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; min-height: 22px;" class=""><br class=""></div><div style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;" class="">Sometimes it takes darkness and the sweet</div><div style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;" class="">confinement of your aloneness</div><div style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; min-height: 22px;" class=""><br class=""></div><div style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;" class="">to learn</div><div style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; min-height: 22px;" class=""><br class=""></div><div style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;" class="">anything or anyone</div><div style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;" class="">that does not bring you alive</div><div style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; min-height: 22px;" class=""><br class=""></div><div style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;" class="">is too small for you.</div><div style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; min-height: 22px;" class=""><br class=""></div><div style="margin: 0px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;" class=""><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space:pre"> </span>- David Whyte</div></div><div style="color: rgb(35, 35, 35); font-family: arial, helvetica; font-size: 10pt;" class=""><br class=""></div></div></div></div></div></div></font></div></body></html>