Every weekend, I will highlight a creative inspiration; poet, artist, piece of work. I believe that writing, and creative endeavours are a conversation. Sometimes we are whispering to our own hearts, and other times to others. So, when I read works by other writers, or view art, I am trying to hear the voice of the creative, within the joy, or melancholy, within the experience.
Ask Me
Some time when the river is ice ask me
mistakes I have made. Ask me whether
what I have done is my life. Others
have come in their slow way into
my thought, and some have tried to help
or to hurt: ask me what difference
their strongest love or hate has made.
I will listen to what you say.
You and I can turn and look
at the silent river and wait. We know
the current is there, hidden; and there
are comings and goings from miles away
that hold the stillness exactly before us.
What the river says, that is what I say.
The poem “Ask Me” © by William Stafford was first published in The New Yorker on January 4, 20101. It can also be found in Stafford’s collection titled “New and Selected Poems,” which was published by Graywolf in 1999.
‘How To Analyse A Poem’
Step 1: Subject. What is the poem about and why?
Step 2: Theme. What are the recurring ideas and topics?
Step 3: Tone. How would you describe the mood of the language?
Step 4: Imagery. What literary devices are used and what do they signify?
Step 5: Form. Why the poet has chosen this structure?
Step 6: Feeling. What are the different emotions being conveyed?
https://www.poetryessay.co.uk/how-to-analyse-a-poem.html#google_vignette
Provides a succinct method to analysis poems, pretty comprehensive without being overwhelming. However, in my creative corner, be warned, I may decide to skip a step or two! ‘Ask Me’ is one of those poems. Listen to Stafford reading his poem, and feel your way through.
Poets Speak
Bonnie Braw Press 