This is a perfect companion poem to read before and after The Nuclear Family was a Mistake, the longread by David Brooks which is on track to AOTD tomorrow.
Actually, it’s probably a better use of time to spend a solid hour with this poem than with David Brooks, but both are an excellent use of time. ;)
I read this, in print, at the public library in Lawrence, Kansas. New Yorker poetry (and cartoons, of course) are my favorite way to shake up an otherwise monotonous work day.
I read it while standing, but then I had to sit. I picked it up and put it down, again and again, me and the magazine, and together we took long breaks to think. I looked at the ceiling. The poem looked at the ceiling. Then we looked at each other again, and for some time I wasn't really seeing the things around me, I was just seeing the ideas, words and images, and allowing myself to feel the fleeting whip of wisdom. It's good to know I'm still not a robot. Because poetry.
LOVE “fleeting whip of wisdom!” I have to confess that because of Readup, I have let all my subscriptions go, including The Sun! That’s how stellar I find this App - it has the best variety of all the top magazines and periodicals. Thankyouthankyouthankyou!
I have enjoyed the words and wisdom of Tony Hoagland in The Sun Magazine for years. He never disappoints. Fresh innovative images/ love this!
“They preferred the name of the tree to the taste of the apple”
How cool! I have always loved The Sun Magazine. In Michigan, I met a man who loves The Sun so much that he personally maintains a subscription as a gift for the small, local library. I've never heard of Tony Hoagland, but I'm fairly certain he'll be in my consciousness forever now.
The way this poem clunks from "they" to "I" to "you" is perfect. It's almost like there are three very distinct chapters.
To figure out "transmuted" - the influence of "they" on "I" - is basically to understand the human condition.
Awesome is an understatement.
Agreed.
This is a perfect companion poem to read before and after The Nuclear Family was a Mistake, the longread by David Brooks which is on track to AOTD tomorrow.
Actually, it’s probably a better use of time to spend a solid hour with this poem than with David Brooks, but both are an excellent use of time. ;)
This is perfect.
Holyfuckingshit
Ha! Right?!
I read this, in print, at the public library in Lawrence, Kansas. New Yorker poetry (and cartoons, of course) are my favorite way to shake up an otherwise monotonous work day.
I read it while standing, but then I had to sit. I picked it up and put it down, again and again, me and the magazine, and together we took long breaks to think. I looked at the ceiling. The poem looked at the ceiling. Then we looked at each other again, and for some time I wasn't really seeing the things around me, I was just seeing the ideas, words and images, and allowing myself to feel the fleeting whip of wisdom. It's good to know I'm still not a robot. Because poetry.
Oh man. The saddest lines:
I was young and I wanted to prove myself,
but the words I learned from them transmuted me.
By the time I noticed, the change had already occurred.
Let us all breathe and exist mindfully so we don’t wake up one day years from now and notice too late that we’ve changed unintentionally.
LOVE “fleeting whip of wisdom!” I have to confess that because of Readup, I have let all my subscriptions go, including The Sun! That’s how stellar I find this App - it has the best variety of all the top magazines and periodicals. Thankyouthankyouthankyou!
Sunday is a wonderful day for poetry.
Love this ... thanks for the reminder
I have enjoyed the words and wisdom of Tony Hoagland in The Sun Magazine for years. He never disappoints. Fresh innovative images/ love this! “They preferred the name of the tree to the taste of the apple”
Perfect!
How cool! I have always loved The Sun Magazine. In Michigan, I met a man who loves The Sun so much that he personally maintains a subscription as a gift for the small, local library. I've never heard of Tony Hoagland, but I'm fairly certain he'll be in my consciousness forever now.
The way this poem clunks from "they" to "I" to "you" is perfect. It's almost like there are three very distinct chapters.
To figure out "transmuted" - the influence of "they" on "I" - is basically to understand the human condition.