'What we call the beginning is often the end / And to make an end is to make a beginning'
The subject of Brexit has – let’s face it – been the subject of much poetry – and much debate - on the blogs of Write Out Loud over the last few years. So as Britain finally exited from the European Union at 11pm GMT on New Year's Eve, it seems apt to reflect that European commission president Ursula von der Leyen chose to mark this historic moment with poetry, by quoting lines taken from TS Eliot’s Little Gidding, the final part of his Four Quartets:
What we call the beginning is often the end
And to make an end is to make a beginning.
You can read the full poem here
Stephen Gospage
Tue 5th Jan 2021 16:14
I fondly remember a visit to Little Gidding in 2014, before all the Brexit saga began. Although I acquired Belgian nationality in 2020 and am therefore insulated from any impact of Brexit in Belgium, having worked for the EU for over 35 years, I am immensely sad at what has happened.