by Andrew Bullen SJ
Wherever Pamplona is:
you mistake the enemy
and over trust your own boldness,
flourish an outdated flag
for the last time and with style:
you’re on the defensive.
The yells and roar and fire
are a dazzling confusion:
then the long quiet proclaims defeat.
Pain tells the soldier his leg
is turned to a mess of blood
the wound will heal all his life.
Call this Pamplona.
Pamplona is whatever
wrenches failure into blessing.
It is the end of noise
and can happen anywhere.
Whenever fame goes – and style goes –
and you’re useless is Pamplona.
Only later will it announce
a new way of being history.
Pamplona is the lifelong beginning
of the journey into silence.