Literature sparks our imagination and what more fertile setting for imaging that an island – distant, mysterious – a place of refuge and hope for a better future. These have been some of the themes authors have used over the centuries to describe islands in poems and stories. In this edition, we feature a short poem by the eminent author Langston Hughes. While short and simple, the poem Island represents hope and escape from despair and sorrow.

What do islands mean to you?

Island

Langston Hughes – 1901-1967

Wave of sorrow,
Do not drown me now:

I see the island
Still ahead somehow.

I see the island
And its sands are fair:

Wave of sorrow,
Take me there.