Spring was definitely in the air for the March full moon 3/18 called the "Worm" moon. It is also a time of great unrest and anxiety in the world, and makes me gladder than ever for these thoughtful weekly discussions.
There Will Come Soft Rains by Sara Teasdale - 1884-193 (Thank you Judith)
COULD YOU EMBRACE THAT?( St. Thomas Aquinas) by Daniel Ladinsky
Amethyst Beads by Eavan Boland - 1944-2020
Every Mourning by Michael Kleber-Diggs
Marina Tsvetaeva by Ilya Kaminsky
Not Once by Sharon Olds
The session started with quite lively sharings:
from Paul:
Pact: no trouble. they sign. No nervous cough
peace is a moment when murder pays off.
He provided this from Ralph Waldo Emerson: stand-up comic.
I dream of a better tomorrow
for chickens can cross the road and not be questioned about their motives.
Dust if you must : https://www.ellenbailey.com/poems/ellen_218.htm
https://www.ellenbailey.com/poems/ellen_218.htm
Sara Teasdale: the poem is highly anthologized; https://www.bartleby.com/103/56.html
Everyone loved the sounds, the evocation of smell, form where the rhyme flows without notice… As one person put it, a strong message in soft delivery… and how timeless! Looking at her dates, one thinks of her writing about WW1, after the flu pandemic and our current year…
Can you Embrace:I was bad about not putting Ladinsky as poet for the next one, l which got Mary looking up poetry by St. Thomas Aquinas (he did write lots). That is only the title, which comes from Aquinas indeed. Ladinsky's book "Love poems from God: 12 sacred voices from the East and West is highly recommended. As for sides of God we do not expect... it came up that in Deuteronomy apparently God shows his “back” … Note the form of the poem as a chalice… The conversation veered to how we deal with horrors, stand up to tyrants, and attitudes towards negatives. In one of the Hafiz translations by Ladinsky, (more renderings, than sticking to literal meanings) the question also comes out about how we can love even the most terrible thing in any "that".
Eaven Boland: Kathy brought up her poem, The Pomegranate https://poets.org/poem/pomegranate where the first line mentions the Persephone/Demeter story was the only legend she has ever loved.
Amethyst, known for its calming effect…and is the zodiac stone for February... ) Zodiac stone for February)
The "old simples" (archaic use to refer to herbs) for Martin provides a clue -- what magic do we need to survive -- promises, compromising, bargains-- what brings us back to light? When something feels "right" we light up... see the world in a positive light perhaps.
Paul was reminded of Irish myths, Judith of Danish trolls dancing to switch places with children.
In this different "twist" on the myth, the emphasis is on the mother-- but we know, this "I" is not just
for Demeter. It is a hard poem to read... and we were struck by "the well of the throat where tears start."
We also were struck by the repeated end line -- it is not a question. A child... Is it the child, the separated subject from "who will never remember this"? The bond between mother and child... the ache of separation... and these amethyst beads as reminders, healers... A good poem resists "explanation"-- and this metaphor of amethyst, "an old stress of crystal" ... "an impression of earthly housekeeping" where
the press of "stress/impress..." will almost rhyme with promise.
Every mourning: Such a poignant coupling of grief with the quotidien in the title. One person remarked the predominant feel of pronouns... I... she... I... she... and then the dividing solo line, "Dear friends, I am the nicest man on earth." The use of ants as metaphor follows... all kinds: weaver, carpenter, fire ants...
slaves of the pharaoh... and one little black ant, alone, alone.
This desire to belong, to be part of a colony, lighten/the weight of the day...
I highly recommend this documentary about Bryan Stevenson and his work in Alabama to bring justice into the legal system, prisons.
The poem is strong... the detail of the first part of his "feet" -- there are two, and they can breathe in the sandals, reinforces the contrast in the second part where he yearns to breathe... The poem calls for stories... how stones are thrown at a woman walking too close to a synagogue; how a dog will remember treatment associated with a language and tone of voice...
Marina Tsvetaeva:
You may have heard Kaminsky's poem, "We lived happily during the war" -- https://slate.com/culture/2022/03/interview-ilya-kaminsky-poet-ukraine.html
I listened to the Cornell program on 3/24— he ended with a terrific new poem, “I ask that I do not die” — I wish I had a copy! What keen intelligence he applies to powerful lyric. His poem, Marina Tsvetaeva ( on poets walk) creates a feeling of dream— or perhaps she is creating the poem with him, as his muse. The metaphor of "gull", (see Chekhov) as soul... coupled with the verb "torn" prepares the link between soul… and pain. The final stanza seems to have him genuflect… and we felt the break before the final line made the very window he wants… is he inside the house, looking out? outside looking in? looking up at the “house” of his poem? He takes his "human-ness" to see the world. The poem elicited much discussion including the problem of turn of the century translation of Akhmatova and Tsvetaeva's work in this time period of transition from czarist to soviet rule. Of course Tsvetaeva’s life is tragic https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poets/marina-tsvetaeva…
It was a coincidence that Jim’s wife knew Ilya, a student at Brighton HS, after immigrating with his family from Odessa. Partially deaf because of a misdiagnosed illness, he has a delightful Russian accent that he invites the audience to adopt to join in his expression of strong emotions, peppered with humor.
Not Once: We ran out of time in the first group to discuss this..
Not once... never once... ... did she feel lucky... and through the chaos of falling in a hospital while tending someone else
we too struggle to understand what is going on. Not until today -- a double realization: grateful for good fortune ...
and understanding a certain numbness -- not just about her circumstances but applied to those "struck in her name" (i.e. as American and American war?)...
Strike is a powerful verb... to hit: as in deliver a blow; lightening strikes... but so does an awareness of an idea; The strike out...(baseball) strike out on a trip (set out). Here, she hits the floor... is struck by it... and reviews her expectations --
"as if to be struck by the earth" -- -- floating in space and struck by a wrecking ball?
A gleam of empathy for others struck...
We didn't discuss the title... but Kathy offered some insight into the poet's life and experiences of a series of bad strikes.
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