Thaw and freeze, thaw and freeze,
over and over act
the season’s wintry pattern.
Handcuffs are fact. Reason is chain
strung across the street.
Believe in steel, the lock, the eaten key.
Fantasize ice. Dream of waltzing in the
razor wire. Kiss the
red place where the rope scrapes. It’s warm.
Iron is real. The careful hand steals from an
unwatched plate and
the greatest pleasure is to keep from getting caught.
Insist on amazement. Take comfort in the lack
of an exit. The lucky
get lost in turns and halls, blind and narrow.
Fortunate are the frozen who don’t feel
the snow. Best are
the bound who sleep through the blizzard.
***
I offer this for Read Write Poem Prompt #55. I used Christine’s prompt this week.
17 responses so far ↓
Christine // December 4, 2008 at 12:39 am |
A good poem for the oncoming winter. Metal becomes dangerous in the cold. It almost sounds as if the narrator would wish to be without feeling so as not to feel the pain. At the same time, the speaker is a sort of hidden voice. Interesting poem, Nathan, so many strong, vivid images and metaphors, as usual.
nathan1313 // December 4, 2008 at 3:52 am |
Thanks christine. I wanted to experiment here with the speaker. I tend to use “we” a lot and I this one started out that way. I’m in the mood to experiment so I’m trying out different things. The idea for this comes from William Blake’s phrase about our “mind-forged manacles” — the way we handcuff ourselves until eventually that restriction feels comfortable and freedom seems scary, things get turned upside down.
Crafty Green Poet // December 4, 2008 at 8:02 am |
this works well both literally and metaphorically, very appropriate for the current weather too
Ingrid/durable pigments // December 4, 2008 at 10:54 am |
Nathan, I love what you’re saying just above me here about the inspiration for this piece. Hitting me where I live.
I love the strong sentences here: Handcuffs are fact, Reason is chain. Love “Kiss the / red place where the rope scrapes. It’s warm.” A great piece, and perfect with the current “climate.”
Michelle // December 4, 2008 at 12:46 pm |
Nathan, I find the sense of imprisonment terrifying.
Carolee // December 4, 2008 at 6:32 pm |
i agree with michelle that much of this is terrifying. and the last stanza is especially powerful.
Tenley // December 4, 2008 at 8:02 pm |
I tried saying something kind of similar, a while back … I like yours better. I like the combination of cold and constraint. Maybe I’ll go back and work on mine? Thanks — I’ve been following your blog, and enjoying it.
Here’s my little contribution, “tether”:
The rope gone, you
feel it more. Made more free
than before you felt it, more whole for the
sting of worn wrists.
The rope is the weight that,
absent, floats me; the rope I bind
my heart in. This is the story
I tell, that in the rope I find
direction.
Philo // December 5, 2008 at 7:03 am |
Lucky are the snowbirds, the wealthy who can retreat every winter to South Beach, Puerto Vallarta, …
nathan1313 // December 5, 2008 at 11:57 am |
CGP: Thank you. The weather here was part of the inspiration for this. It’s so cold!
Thanks Ingrid. I’m fascinated by the way we handcuff ourselves and learn to value the handcuffs more than our own freedom. I think sometimes when we sacrifice our desire to some sense of obligation we lose both the truth of our desire and the thing we’re obliged to.
Terrifying, yes Michelle, I think you’re right. Sometimes don’t we forget to be terrified?
Thanks carolee.
Thanks for following things here Tenley. That means much to me. And thank you for the beautiful poem. We should all leave poems to each other. It’s a wonderful gift. Did I see on your site that you’re in the humanities? I was a grad student in English for a long time. Do you teach lit? Writing?
True Philo, lucky indeed.
Tenley // December 5, 2008 at 7:03 pm |
Yep, finishing my dissertation in lit, hoping to be done and defend in March. A long slog through cold waters. Not teaching right now, just write write writing. Sigh. It’s nice to hear there’s life after grad school!
And thank _you_, for your own work. Gives me a wonderful pause for breath and thought.
nathan1313 // December 5, 2008 at 7:17 pm |
Thanks Tenley. Good luck with your defense.
johemmant // December 5, 2008 at 10:03 pm |
As usual your use of sound is sublime. Very well done.
nathan1313 // December 5, 2008 at 10:35 pm |
Thank you Jo. Thanks for stopping by. I know you’re really busy.
Dana // December 6, 2008 at 12:55 am |
“The lucky
get lost in turns and halls, blind and narrow.”
Oh, I must be very lucky then.
nathan1313 // December 6, 2008 at 12:59 am |
Me too. I’m lost right now.
cocoyea // December 6, 2008 at 10:07 pm |
“Fortunate are the frozen who don’t feel
the snow. Best are
the bound who sleep through the blizzard.”
Love this!
ravenswingpoetry // December 9, 2008 at 2:03 pm |
The handcuffs become habit, we become a mighty elephant bound by a tiny jump rope. I’d rather feel, perchance to fly, even if it means a fall.
This is powerful. Excellent write.
-Nicole