Friday, March 1, 2013

Bloodless March



today
i can tell you what
a dried orange peel feels like
hanging on—
barely
wrapped in yesterday’s color
now a duller shade
possessed by winter
contained in the glass bowl of night
where mango and cinnamon
and cardamom
die on my lips scented citrus
nut hard and inedible
a shade
of passion’s fruit
wheeled out on gurneys
of seasons past




Copyright © 2013 Jennifer Wagner

10 comments:

  1. So much is packed into this poem. The image of "possessed by winter/contained in the glass bowl of night" resonates strongly. The dying fruit/loss imagery is crafted beautifully Jennifer.

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  2. I have experienced death and grief and loss many times in my life and have often felt there is a certain fish-bowl/glass-bowl element to the process in this age of modern medicine (though there is a sense, as well - in the poem - of other emotions and, perhaps, events at play here). In particular, I thought: "a dried orange peel . . . hanging on" and then sweeping to: "die on my lips scented citrus" really moving . . . visceral and yet, very loving. "Gurneys of seasons past" is an epically memorably line - about life and death (and just plain living), I think. A lot in this stirring piece to ponder on.

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    1. Thank you so much Wendy. I so love your thoughtful response to this piece. You don't miss a thing. It is multilayered and deeply personal...the 'visceral and yet, very loving' description you gave is so perfect and exactly what I was going for. Thanks Wendy, I always value your input so much.

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  3. smiles....we have those bowls of dried fruit and spice to refresh the air...the thought of them just hanging on...pretty vivid closing lines putting them on a gurney and wheeling them out....

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    1. Interesting connection, I can see how you made it. Thanks so much for your consistent reading and commenting on my posts Brian.

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  4. I read a lot of metaphors into this one? Is that correct? Nevermind don't answer that - sometimes there's beauty in not knowing :)

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    1. You are correct of course! ...and ha...'beauty in not knowing' reminded me of your recent 'Answering the Unanswerable' post! Thanks for visiting as always Keith, always appreciate your thoughts. :-)

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  5. There comes that gurney, out of left field, and yet, it had to be. No other device would work as well. I like that image of the orange peel barely hanging on and fading.

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    1. Thank you for commenting Shay, and for saying you like that part. :-)

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Thank you for your thoughts!