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Body of Time
| Dark Poetry #4 |
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Body of Time |
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JenniferMaxwell
since 2006-09-14
Posts 2423 |
As I sat at my desk this morning reading Robert Gibbons Body of Time, I caught a glimpse of my studio reflected in the still dark picture window framing treetops and the night sky. I suddenly began to feel like I was trapped in the first few lines of a Billy Collins poem. You know, that part where he sets the time, the scene and lulls you into a warm fuzzy feeling just before he socks you between the eyes with the run over groundhog image splattered across the page. My darkened pre-dawn window reflected that Billy Collins opening scene, with a mirror image of the soothing atmosphere I’d attempted to create in my new studio. The couch and recliner, surrounded by rain forest green trees and plants, were both set on an angle to soften the harshness of empty chairs placed in a row. A bowl of fruit on the sofa table, directed the eye toward the warm oak kitchenette cabinets where the shut cupboards are lined with tins of cat food and the freezer with healthy choice dinners for one. There must be a blues song about morning reflections in picture windows. Billy would know if there is and would hum it if he ever sat alone in his studio reading Body of Time. |
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serenity blaze Member Empyrean
since 2000-02-02
Posts 27738 |
I'm enjoying your work so much, Jen. You accomplish with words the effect of an "infinity" mirror, capturing us within the capture of you. (And leaving me envious of your studio I might add.) As well as your ability... This was---captivating! |
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JenniferMaxwell
since 2006-09-14
Posts 2423 |
Thanks very much for your kind words, Karen. Not much of a poem, the direction’s unfocused, needs lots more work. Just sort of a note to myself to keep the idea alive until there’s time to get back to it. An aside note - been following your Katrina discussion. You were spot on particularly with this part: “The problems of generational poverty and resulting racism, crime, political corruption on all levels was revealed, and I believe that this historical storm will go down in the history books as one of the sorriest points of the Bush Administration. No, I don't think he created Katrina, Mike. But he contributed to the chaos by doing nothing, and his own cronyism was revealed when his friends proved to be inept at everything but how to look better on tv.” I’ll never forget the Koppel/Brown interview where Brown, looking like a deer caught in the headlights, admitted he was unaware until that day of people trapped at the Convention Center without adequate food or water - a scene millions around the world had been watching with heavy hearts for days. Your choice of the word inept is a kindness compared to what comes to my mind when I think about Brown - and, of course, Bush. [This message has been edited by JenniferMaxwell (06-03-2008 02:48 PM).] |
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Bob K Member Elite
since 2007-11-03
Posts 4208 |
Dear JM, Are there any places here that you feel sharp changes in the level of the energy of your poem? These would indicate potential fault lines where the poem finds its footing and starts to take off. I hear one between the ultimate and penultimate stanzas. The first two are all right, I suspect; simply not operating with as much JM behind them as the last stanza. They may be part of a different poem or an attempt to digest what you're learning from Billy Collins, the deceptively simple linking of different chains of association, then the unforeseen but in retrospect completely understandable punch in the solar plexus that may well leave you laughing while you gasp for air. The tracking in your first couple of stanzas shows signs of your fascination and your learning curve. If you can find a copy of The Incognito Lounge by Denis Johnson, you may find it rewarding as well. I must ask about Robert Gibbons, because I don't know him and you seem to enjoy him. What's he about? Keep on truckin', JM. The good stuff keeps acquiring new and more solid bones. Best, BobK. |
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JenniferMaxwell
since 2006-09-14
Posts 2423 |
To tell you the truth, BobK, that poem didn’t even scratch the surface of what was going on in my mind while I was writing it. And the only part that was totally real, not sure that’s the right word, was the last strophe. Like my mind was spinning in a thousand directions sorting out bits of thoughts and conversations I’d had about reflections, mirror images and perceptions while my fingers typed something quite different - ordinary, accessible, less confusing, less revealing but just enough to keep the thought alive for later. The last strophe was where my mind and fingers reconnected, or something like that. Robert Gibbons writes some amazing prose poems. Most of them are way over my head, mind stretchers for me for sure, but I find well worth the effort it takes to get into them. Here’s a link to one of his I hope you enjoy: http://www.thegodparticle.com/2002_10art/odisv_rg.html Just checked and I can get Johnson’s Incognito Lounge through interlibrary loan. I’ve committed to Burnside’s The Devil’s Footprints this week but will put Incognito on my list as next week’s request. Thanks so much for the suggestion. |
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