Anaphora

To You, Who Will Never See This

I wonder how hated I am.
I wonder how much you hate me.
I wonder if you would smite me to the ground if you saw me,
I wonder if you would relish in my throbbing pain.
I wonder how I became a deep rooted sinner, and
I wonder if I am the cursed one, forever walking the earth.

I wonder, what could I have done?

My voice was the leaky faucet, dripping
and left unattended. When the clock
fell down, and all the ticking chose
to cease, so did my eyes, my lips
my tongue, my heart, my all. Now,
I wonder if I will ever forgive myself.


This needs serious help...but I am working on it. It's hard to do this form and make it look nice and tidy.


The Shower

I said it to the head.
I said it to the water, hard, hardened water.
I said it to all the alabaster tiles, here's to stains.
I said it to the mats, sopping in my filth.
I said it to the rod, daring to hold the weight of my body.
I said it to the curtain, the bastard better not fall.
I said it to myself-- over and over again--
One mustn't cry over spoiled, spilled milk.

Free Thought

Today I was thinking about how where you live deeply affects your poetry. When I was reading our packet, I was amazed at the difference you could feel in the tones of Ali's poems and other poems in the packet. You can see this a lot in poetry. Of course it is a no-brainier that people of different background are going to write differently, but I have been thinking about it. Sometimes in a poem, you write for a speaker that is not yourself. Would you ever really be able to write a poem in the eyes of someone who has a very different life experiences? I have seen some novelist, like Wally Lamb, do a great job at writing from a females perspective, and visa-versa, but what about a different culture? Just some things I have been thinking about, especially with a culture that is very different from our own.

On Ghazels

Ghazals are very interesting forms. I really like the concept behind them. I think that it is interesting that you can have couplets that are totally unrelated to each other, but fit together so well. Of all the Ghazals, I think I liked the traditional ones the best. Like "Ghazal" by Agha Shahid Ali, I thought his work was beautiful. I am not sure if it is because the ghazal is a Persian form, and therefore more "mastered" by this artist, but it seemed to be smoother, and more in tune. I think that my favorite line is "where there were homes in Deir Yassein, you'll see a dense forest--/That village was raised. There's no sign of Arabic." I think that you can see the passion behind this poem, I love it.