Dear Editor,
It is said that art sometimes imitates life. This can be said for poetry too. The current sex abuse scandal at Penn State and people involved remind me of the poet T. S Eliot and his work “Four Quartets.” To quote the last quartet, “Little Gidding”:
And last, the rending pain of re-enactment
Of all that you have done, and been, the shame
Of motives late revealed, and the awareness
Of things ill done and done to others harm
Which once you took for exercise of virtue
Then fool’s approval stings, and honour stains
From wrong to wrong the exasperated spirit
Proceeds, unless restored by that refining fire
Where you must move in measure, like a dancer
These words reflect the alleged choices of those in charge at Penn State who failed morally and legally to protect young boys against a sexual deviate. Let’s hope and pray all involved will someday be restored by that “refining fire” of truth, integrity and justice.
Margaret Blair Testrake
Ripley, N.Y.
