Never Alone // Moriah Nelson

            I can honestly say this poem, more than any other poem as far as I can recall, has puzzled me and yet drawn me in to its unique rhythms and vocabulary. A complete observation of the poem brings me to appreciate how T.S. Eliot is able to capture emotion and experiences by creating scenarios in nature and cityscapes. I didn’t expect Eliot to draw from so many other works when composing this poem. Before reading the poem’s notes, I caught on to themes similar to Dante’sInferno, a parallel Eliot purposefully created. I see another potential parallel in “V. What the Thunder Said”. Eliot writes, “Who is the third who walks always beside you?” (Eliot 17). From what I can conclude from the context of the poem, and because of my limited knowledge of T.S. Eliot (working to remedy this), I think Eliot’s readers may recognize he is writing of the reality of a land which has been through immense suffering and are numb to any prospect of abundant life. Readers may also, then, reflect on the presence of Christ in the midst of the struggles which life brings. From Scripture’s accounts of the “fourth man” in the fiery furnace with Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego (English Standard Version Study Bible, Daniel 3) to the two disciples on their way to Emmaus encountering Christ after his resurrection (English Standard Version Study Bible, Luke 24), the Bible consistently reveals how we are never alone in our suffering. It may appear to us that we are simply walking through this life alongside our “tangible” friends and family who also have their own struggles, and yet there is always the genuine reality and knowledge that God will never abandon us. Of course, this is just my own interpretation of one small section of a varied poem, but I was encouraged when my reading inspired me to reflect on the omnipresence of God. I am really looking forward to hearing and reading about what every has taken away from their reading of “The Wasteland”. 
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