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| http://youtu.be/4_aFhf3tnbc |
On the day that I was born
A million people said,
“I'm going to work and my boss is a
big jerk.
My credit's in the red.”
On the day that I was born
A thousand lawyers moved,
“My client's as clear as the wintery
air,
Though the evidence strains to prove.”
On the day that I was born
A hundred fishermen
Said, “If I want the fish here when I
come back next year,
I've got to leave these ones in.”
On the day that I was born
Ten nurses in the wing
Said, “The world may jade you, but
not today, babe: you're
Quite a lovely thing.”
On the day that I was born,
With my first breath I cried,
“I'm cold, someone spanked me, I'm in
need of a hanky,
But, my God! I'm alive.”
Wrote this song on a sticky note in middle school. The note disappeared long ago, but the song came back to me in a flash on my run tonight. I forget who the ten original people in stanza 4 were, but the rest is authentic c.8th/9th grade me. I guess it pays to tie a tune and rhythms to words (songs work their way into the muscles – and sometimes, on a run, trying to sweat out a cold, the right song comes out instead).
ReplyDelete*Thanks to Brian Lanker (birthday laughter), Lisa (family), Esther (just doors), David Seymour Chim (a mother nursing hopes), Matthias Steiner (bearing the weight), Cristy (my favorite day), Shanleigh (the ocean) Tristan (plays music), Elliot Erwit (haunches of youth), & Amanda (astounded; incredulous) for making this collage full.
First off, I want to say that I've spent more time reading your poems than I ever thought I would. Your writing is more than beautiful... it is captivating. I have never been a big fan of poetry, if I'm being honest. But, maybe that is because I am always forced to read poetry in class that is hard for me to decipher. Your poems are relatable and your writing takes my usual worrisome thoughts about life and puts them at ease, which is why I am drawn to this poem in particular.
ReplyDeleteTo me, this poem means that life is the greatest gift anyone can receive. There are a million things that occur in our lives from day to day but it is how we approach them that paints the image of who we are. People tend to worry about the little things and forget about the bigger picture: their own well-being.
Thank you for reminding me that life is precious.
The dedication page of my first book reads "to the ones who say they don't like poetry."
DeleteSo you are my target demographic.
I'm glad you like them :)
This poem is simple and beautiful. The message is wonderful. I took the message to be that there is so much going on in this world and we are so lucky to be a part, no matter how small, of it all. While some take on the idea of "the world is so big and I can not make an impact" this poem is screaming, " lets make the most of this awesome thing called life". I think we all need to be reminded of this. Rather than being overwhelmed by how much is going on in the world that we will never know about, we should appreciate how much there is to experience. There is so much to do and so much to see and this poem motivates me to go out and do something. This makes me want to just go out and experience life. It is wonderful and I am in awe of what you have created in this lovely poem.
ReplyDeleteGood -- I'm glad. Do me a favor and post again once you've gone out and done that thing, so I know what you found in that experience...
DeleteThis poem drew my attention initially because of the shape and formatting, but then the content sparked my interest even further. I interpreted the poem as a life lesson saying that everyone in the world does what they need to do to survive, but very few people realize the beauty in what life has to offer. I thought that by using your structure of broad to specific, you showed circumstances that were most negative to most positive; meaning that the general population is in discontent but as the numbers of people got smaller and smaller the “but” became increasingly meaningful. You started off with the millions of people not wanting to go to work because of their lousy situation, but they do it anyways because that’s what it takes. If that is what you meant, I completely agree. I think more people should be spending their time doing things that they love and care for, but I wish it was that simple and everyone could provide for their families by just doing what they love. You see a similar situation with the lawyer knowing the verdict of his case, but realizing he won’t be able to prove it because of lack of evidence. I saw this as a lesson in how not all things are fair, and not everyone will view things the way you do so you just have to accept it. The nurses’ story was the acceptance of the cruel aspects of life, but life itself is precious. Lastly, you point out the not so pretty parts of being a newborn baby, but end with the realization that being alive rules out all of the ugly parts of it. I like how you started every stanza with “on the day I was born” because as I read the poem I saw an image of the world, then a country, then a city, then a building, then a room in the building, meaning that while all of these things were happening to other people, there is importance in the smallest and most specific events. I thought this poem was a fresh and beautiful world view and I enjoyed reading it.
ReplyDeleteGlad you liked it -- you know, just because we don't always get to pick what we do, doesn't mean we can't love it: the lawyer accentuates the positive, the fisherman the purposeful, the nurse the present, and the speaker the essential (we are alive, and as you say, "being alive [overrules] all of the ugly parts").
DeleteMy initial understanding of this poem came from the repetition. There is a repetition of the first line in every stanza which reveals the vastness of the cyclical lives in the world. The rhyme scheme is repeated throughout the entire poem with some of the end rhymes being slant rhymes. The continual rhyming portrays the orderly structure and repetition in people’s lives. The author uses internal rhyme too which makes the poem sway back and forth and create a singsong tone; the stressed syllables become very routine with the rhyming. The first stanza seems very naturalistic to me. I see the universe very unamused by the birth of one insignificant man. The world does not revolve around anyone, and it will not stop when a certain person dies. Since the world is unaffected by one person, the universe seems to be detached and careless to the humankind. This poem is also very negative in that all the situations that are described to be happening in the world are bad situations. However, in the last stanza, there is a nuance because the situation being described is more positive at the end. As a whole, the poem reveals the darknesses and difficulties of human living, but the last line shows that it is a gift to simply be on this planet. I also think it significant that the author chose to separate the word ‘alive’ in the last line of the poem because the poem starts with the idea of birth which is the first step of life. In the end, the progression of one’s life is inevitable and everyone is lucky and most are happy to be alive.
ReplyDeleteI'm eating pie right now.
DeleteIt would be a sin against the nature of my existence to dwell in sadness while apples and cinnamon dance on my taste buds.
This poem is expressing a simple observation of life and how despite all the bad in the world there still are good things. In the beginning, it starts out with one million people complaining about their lives and their occupations, next the amount decreases into one thousand lawyers commenting about their clients and the hope they have for them to succeed. Then one hundred fishermen are introduced commenting on the amount of fish that are available for next year only if they aren’t caught this year. The number then decreases again to ten nurses who talk about all the badness in the world but remark that “today” you as a baby are an object of goodness. The decreasing numbers coincides with the amount of bitterness in each event along with the increase of hope and goodness. The last two lines of the poem brings the concept together. Despite having felt the coldness of the atmosphere, experiencing the harshness of someone else, and needing the help of a “hanky,” the baby is alive and breathing. The repetition of the beginning of each group of lines emphasizes the idea that everything good or bad is happening on one shared day and although many unfavorable things may be happening to some people, some good things are still happening to others.
ReplyDeleteOne could argue, in response to your closing line, that good things are happening to everybody all the time -- even in the midst of seeming negatives (after all, if things are happening to you, you're at least alive, and that's something to build more positives onto). And even if it's only the minority that acknowledges this goodness (1 million office workers vs. 1 little newborn), still that positive truth remains a strong and undeniable one.
Delete