“By Simply Staying Possesses All”

A century ago, Robert Frost composed the poem entitled Bond and Free. The title is telling of the work: the contrast and tension between the fleetingness of Thought and rootedness of Love. Thought soars through the heavens and is free; it can easily escape the harsh realities of this world. On the other hand, Love is inherently bound to the beloved and is forced to cling to this world, leaving its imprint and staying in one place.

Thought is far more compelling than its opposite, Love, for a majority of the work. The limitlessness of the intellect appeals to the human spirit, and Frost draws us to prefer this to earth-bound Love. But just before we reach the conclusion, the tone changes. We are left to consider that love is not as bound as it seemed, but rather “by simply staying possesses all”. This “all” is something which thought cannot possess—its promiscuity brings it to move from part to part, never quite encompassing or seeing the whole. Implicit in this distinction is the understanding that Love finds its freedom in binding itself to the beloved—understanding it in a fuller sense than the fleetingness of Thought can reach. And in this particular knowledge of the “all” could lie the real object which thought is endlessly seeking.

We might see the tension and contrast in Bond and Free as the embodiment of the constant war between freedom and limits today. We are told that freedom is incompatible with limits—bounds to our desires and actions are inherently contrary to liberty. The restlessness of Americans requires us to move from place to place, never settling down and committing to a state, a community, or a person. Many see these as limiting the ability to achieve the greatest heights of wealth, power, and opportunity. The limitless growth of a career and life appeals to our humanity, just as the “dauntless wings” of Thought in Frost’s poem compels us to prefer it to the immobility of love.

But if Frost is right, the juxtaposition of freedom and limits is mistaken. Accomplishment, money, power, and even knowledge are ultimately meaningless unless they are pursued for the sake of something more permanent. Thought shows this by his fleetingness, and the same is reflected in our every-day lives. But would this be so if we allowed a place for the limits of commitment? As Frost brings us to see, limits are not an imposed shackling but rather, could help us to possess what we really seek. This is attained through a particular–perhaps by building up a community, a family, or caring for a loved one. If our country had more communities, families, and commitment to others, perhaps problems such as huge, centralized government would not exist. Through commitments, we can be satisfied with all we can possess–that which we can truly call our own. In this we can rest while still being free–perhaps the most free of all.