Life’s Little Misdirections 🥀🦋

Winter Light link

I’ve done this/these moments, in five different poems. Never all in one…

Winter Light
by Luke Johnson

Let’s say you watch your father
heave & sputter
& froth as air has left his lungs
leaving him still & small.
Let’s say despite
your sister’s call home
your wife’s call home
your children calling out for you
you’ve come to a bench
by a boarded-up gas station
to light a smoke
& stare across a shady brook
toward mountains placard in snow.
Let’s say a mother swallow slaps
a passing truck
& flips across the sleeted street
landing alone in the gutter.
That as she fights you scan her eyes
& for a moment
find yourself inside your father’s
childhood home
where winter light leans upon
a covered piano
powders an empty gun
then moves along the wooden floor
to fill a box of moths.
You place your lips upon
the swallow’s beak to blow.
Watch its pebbled plume bloat
like a black balloon.
& remember how you’d
run the grove without your shoes
to climb the leaning oak
& listen for the egrets’ wings
in search of fields with water.
It was simpler then. Fire.
Snow. Flood. Sky. Hours falling
like flowers. Your mother
in her lavender slip looking
for wild honey
& both your sisters’ parted mouths
longing for the rain.

https://barrenmagazine.com/winter-light/

I had to ask myself, outlining questions I had, before tackling this poem to realize what I had witnessed in Winter Light…

What has the poet done here setting scene to introduce memories and to speak to existentialism? Winter Light is a story, is a vignette with vignettes. What are these poetic devices that make this poem charming, and what does it say about the narrator and the repeated ‘let’s say’? What’s up with the ampersands?

In a critique, introduce by answering all questions with consideration of what’s been witnessed, and break this poem down for people to realize what can be realized, both from the speaker’s POV, but as poets, to consider before they approach and employ words to produce yet another poem.


What I came up with…

The poem "Winter Light" by Luke Johnson sets a scene that introduces memories and touches upon existentialism. It uses various poetic devices to create its charm. The poem is written in a narrative style, inviting readers to witness a moment in the speaker's life. It's important to analyze the poem's content and form to understand its depth and meaning.

The poem begins by asking the reader to imagine watching the speaker's father in a state of distress, emphasizing the helplessness and vulnerability of the human condition. The imagery of the father heaving and sputtering, with the air leaving his lungs, conveys a sense of mortality and the transient nature of life. This introduction immediately engages the reader's emotions and sets the tone for the poem.

The repetition of "Let's say" is a stylistic choice that adds an element of uncertainty and imagination to the narrative. It suggests that the events described may not be literal but are more like possibilities or reflections. This technique prompts readers to consider different interpretations of the events presented, enhancing the depth of the poem.

The use of ampersands (&) throughout the poem creates a sense of brevity and immediacy. It's a way of connecting ideas and images without fully spelling them out, giving the poem a more fragmented and contemplative quality. The ampersands serve as a way to link various moments and emotions in the poem, reinforcing the idea of memory and the interconnectedness of past and present experiences.

As for existentialism, the poem explores themes of existential reflection and the human search for meaning. The speaker's contemplation of the father's mortality, the swallow's fate, and childhood memories all contribute to an existential undercurrent. The idea of finding oneself "inside your father’s childhood home" suggests a connection between generations and the way memories and experiences are passed down.

In terms of poetic devices, the poem employs vivid imagery, metaphor, and symbolism. Winter light is used to symbolize both the harshness of reality and the beauty of memory. The image of the swallow morphing into a "black balloon" symbolizes transformation and loss. The memory of running barefoot through the grove and listening for the egrets' wings represents a simpler and more innocent past, contrasting with the complexities of the present.

In conclusion, "Winter Light" is a poignant and introspective poem that engages with themes of memory, mortality, and existential contemplation. Its use of repetition, imagery, and ampersands creates a distinctive and emotionally resonant narrative. The poem encourages readers to reflect on their own memories and the human experience. It's a reminder for poets to consider the power of ambiguity and imagination in their work, as well as the ability to convey deep emotions through concise and vivid language.


10.29.23

Four Walls (Context)

Here’s to all the energy, vitriol, indifference, sanction, demonstration that fills your lungs like the black balloon, so you can feel the weight of one small bird.

Shall I never write poetry again?
Wing-clipped & and burdened
under a white cape. Buzzing
shears the head of hope
I’ll ever be beautiful again.
Winter death dreams not
of eternal Spring, silenced,
sputtering, inhaling morbid
dust, strapped in leather,
collecting all aspiration
of chasing them through
the wild grasses of Summers past
to get to Fall, get to fall,
fall, fall, fall…no arms
to receive fleeting particle
white, slowly painting
my green home going down.

Let this be
the last one.


10.29.23

Bookmark a life this late, risk
sleep without knowing
if I’ll wake to realize
the chased happy ending?