Tuesday, October 17, 2006
Child's Passage
"It seems only yesterday I used to believe
there was nothing under my skin but light.
If you cut me I could shine.
But now when I fall upon the sidewalks of life,
I skin my knees. I bleed. "
An excerpt from "On Turning Ten" by Billy Collins
Though he's a long way away from being 10, this entry on his son by Mr. Sgazzetti at Isoglossia brought back memories of this Billy Collins poem.
I won't be apologizing for posting a Billy Collins poem here. I love his immediacy, his intimacy, and his humour. Give me Wallace Stevens, ee cummings, Pablo Neruda, and T.S. Elliot and Mr. Collins and I've got enough poetry to chew on for my life's remainder. Some folks see Mr. Collins as too accessible or excessively tied to our time and our place. "He's not thick or impenetrable enough", they say. I plead stupidity to this comment. That or laziness. I like to read a poem without having to page through multiple reference books to comprehend the poet's point. Perhaps if these "difficult" poets insert weblinks to the esoterica inserted within their work, comprehension may be easier for their readers.
And damn if he's not one of the funniest poets around.
Anyway, here's to Adam. May the sidewalks of life be soft to him for at least a bit longer.
Comments:
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I appreciate the note. I was starting to hear only crickets out there, thinking my regular readers thought I was wussing out with Mr. Collins.
Any interview that I've heard or read of him only increased my admiration and appreciation of him. I do like Czeslaw Milosz as well, even though his life view is quite a bit darker than Mr. Collins'.
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Any interview that I've heard or read of him only increased my admiration and appreciation of him. I do like Czeslaw Milosz as well, even though his life view is quite a bit darker than Mr. Collins'.
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