I once wrote a poem in school that my teacher went nuts over. She talked about all of the symbolism and allegory she saw and how insightful it was for a person of my age. She even went so far as to write it out on the blackboard to have the class study, analyze and dissect my brilliance. Then she had it published in the school paper.
I didn’t know what the hell she was talking about.
The assignment was to write a poem on what it is like to be a teenager. Now you may be wondering why I have been thinking about this let alone writing about it 13 years later. The truth is I can recite that poem verbatim as if it has been branded on my brain. And the scary thing is that it still resonates with me.
Did I have life all figured out in 8th grade? What a depressing thought, particularly since I have spent the formative years of my life trying to decipher exactly that. I have spent countless hours, days, years, journals, blogs and tears analyzing life and the meaning of it. I had it down to 5 lines and 16 words. Man was I succinct.
My adult musings are a little more in depth, a little more thought out and a lot more often. However, even with age, experience, more dominant opinions and more sensitive wounds to protect, I was surprisingly on target back in the day. That poem I wrote was meant literally. It wasn’t cynical or idealistic…it was honest. And I find that it translates.
If you want the truth, always ask a kid.
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6 comments:
Pooh - you beat me to it.
McD, after all that hype you have to share the poem.
Yeah, no sh*t... as my eyes continued down the page I am like, ok, two paragraphs left, odd style for a poem, but I am certain she included it... then the second to last paragraph, ok, she saved it for last, that makes sense... As I begin to read the last paragraph the main thought going through my head... WTF? This is bullsh*t...
SHE DIDN'T INCLUDE THE POEM...
LAME - you get an "F" on your blog... Not just an F, but a ZERO.
So much for your teenage brilliance... HAHA!
Although, I am sure that there is no way the thought of including it didn't cross your mind.. so you must have left it out for a reason...
Maybe you are afraid the blog built it up too much and it would be a let down... maybe...
Maybe because you only want to share it with those in the 'inner circle' - of which certain blog readers (such as myself) are not members of... maybe...
Maybe you wanted to create suspense for the upcoming poem blog... maybe...
It was a conscience decision not to include the poem for a few reasons.
The main reason is that I am EXTREMELY self conscious about sharing any of my writing. I don’t even like to talk about any of the stuff I am working on to the closest members of my family. Now before I get comments about how that is crap because I have a blog, there is a difference to me between what I post and what I write privately. I know it will be subject to interpretation, ridicule and judgment. I can handle that. I can’t on something I have worked really hard on. It would cause me serious self doubt and mental trauma. That is why I am the Frustrated Writer. I can’t share my stuff!
The other reason is the poem wasn’t even good. I was 14!
If you really want to read it, I am sure there is a back copy of The Wallace World floating around somewhere…
OK, Violet Sanford, (reference to Coyote Ugly) here is my rebuttal:
A) You wrote it in eighth grade. No one judges you by what you did in eighth grade. I had big hair, wore bubble skirts, pegged jeans, and Eastlands which were a half size to big in order to accomodate the multiple pairs of flourescent colored socks I was wearing.
B) You have already been subjected to your eighth grade peers' opinions. How could publishing it on the blog 14 years later be more traumatizing than Wallace World?
C) We all love you and are supportive of you. Well, all except for anonymous, he tends to fire us up. However, if he make any rude comments we all have your back (I'm sure we can even get Ma B to put him in his place.) anonymous, can you promise your best behavior if she publishes it?
Where is my hot Aussie to help me deal with my issues? Not fair...
Come on McD. Even though you published a new blog to throw us off the scent of the poem we still want to read it. No one will ridicule - in fact I'm sure most will agree that we love and respect what you write.
Eboogie - only you could come up with such a succinct description of fashion :-)
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