Poem ~ What we remember (for Alex Pretti)

on
What we remember 

For Alex Pretti



An unexpected frost masks the Velux windows
this morning. When I step out, I see the grass
is rimed and crisped. And when I reach
the grounds of the gym the heat of the sun
slanting through the branches of the giant oaks
is raising wisps of steam from the icy ground,

like wishes, like dreams. Small moments
of pause, when we allow ourselves to notice
the ordinary beauty in our lives, are always
welcome, aren’t they? Especially after a few
days of despair at the inhumanity we have all
now seen, the terrible darkness of a man shot 

in a city street, killed for witnessing and caring.
What else can we do but go on believing
in things like goodness and light, in courage
and a rejection of hate? This morning’s ice
has all melted but it is not forgotten, just like
the last words spoken by that man, ‘Are you okay?’


Comments

Dr Anthony Crosse said…
The way your poem employs the natural image of the "unexpected frost" and its transformation under the sun works for processing grief and despair. The "wisps of steam" rising like "wishes, like dreams" are gentle metaphors for hope itself. They are ephemeral but they still rise from a cold, hard reality. The poem's observational tone makes its political and moral structure more devastating, contrasting the "ordinary beauty" of a morning with the "terrible darkness" of a public murder. That final connection of melting ice to Alex’s last words tells me that while physical evidence of the awful trauma fades, the element of care expressed as: "Are you okay?" tells everyone about an integral aspect of the character of this ICU Nurse – Empathy. I would like to think that everyone in the U.S.A reads this – I fact everyone everywhere. What a wasted life TB xxx
22:56
Lynne Rees said…
Thank you for really getting this🙏❤️
09:43
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