Dear Readers,
This week I have two poems for you that Hannah Arendt wrote to her husband Heinrich Blücher in 1946 and 1952.
The first time Arendt visited Europe after the war she was struck by the landscape. She wrote to her friend and mentor Karl Jaspers that the cities reminded her of the Heidelberg Castle, in ruins and waiting for visitors.
Arendt returned in 1952 on an unofficial trip for the Jewish Cultural Reconstruction Commission. She spent March to August traveling around Europe, conducting research in various libraries, and visiting her friends Jaspers, Anne Weil, and Alfred Kazin.
Unlike her first trip back to Europe, she was able to enjoy the renewed landscape. And she was so moved by the beauty of the natural colors and architecture that she wrote a poem to her husband marveling at the scenery.
I hope you enjoy these two. They are two of my favorites.
Until next week,
Sam
Reflections