Poem | It Is I Who Must Begin, by Václav Havel
It Is I Who Must Begin
It is I who must begin.
Once I begin, once I try —
here and now,
right where I am,
not excusing myself
by saying things
would be easier elsewhere,
without grand speeches and
ostentatious gestures,
but all the more persistently
— to live in harmony
with the “voice of Being,” as I
understand it within myself
— as soon as I begin that,
I suddenly discover,
to my surprise, that
I am neither the only one,
nor the first,
nor the most important one
to have set out
upon that road.
Whether all is really lost
or not depends entirely on
whether or not I am lost.
~ Václav Havel ~
The poem It Is I Who Must Begin, by Václav Havel is included in the collection, Teaching with Fire: Poetry That Sustains the Courage to Teach, edited by Sam M. Intrator and Megan Scribner. It is a wonderful collection of eighty-eight poems from such well-loved poets as Walt Whitman, Langston Hughes, Billy Collins, Emily Dickinson, and Pablo Neruda. Each of these evocative poems is accompanied by a brief story from a teacher explaining the significance of the poem in his or her life’s work. This beautiful book also includes an essay that describes how poetry can be used to grow both personally and professionally.
Teaching With Fire was written in partnership with the Center for Teacher Formation and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. Royalties from this book will be used to fund scholarship opportunities for teachers to grow and learn.
Václav Havel was a Czech writer, philosopher, dissident, and statesman. From 1989 to 1992, he served as the first democratically elected president of Czechoslovakia in 41 years. He then served as the first president of the Czech Republic (1993–2003) after the Czech-Slovak split. Within Czech literature, he is known for his plays, essays, and memoirs.
This text is actually not a poem. It is an excerpt – rather reduced one – from the last paragraph of Havel’s letter No. 142 to his wife Olga which he wrote from his time in prison under the Communist regime. The book is called Dopisy Olze (Letters to Olga).
I did read “Letters to Olga” 30 years ago. Wonderful letters. And even today touching me.,
“A genuine, profound, and lasting change for the better… will have to derive from human existence, from the fundamental reconstitution of the position of people in the world, their relationships to themselves and to each other, and to the universe… This is not something that can be designed and introduced like a new car. If it is to be more than just a new variation of the old degeneration, it must above all be an expression of life in the process of transforming itself. A better system will not automatically ensure a better life. In fact, the opposite is true: only by creating a better life can a better system be developed.”
Václav Havel – The Power of the Powerless
Greetings from Germany, Berlin.
Thank u very much