Three of My Fav. Poems: A Treat for your Mind and Soul!

Hello you lovely person,

Hope you are doing well.

Today’s post is more of a treat to my readers. An unusual way of saying Thank You for your continuous support and encouragement.

Photo by Ena Marinkovic from Pexels

While novels and I are old friends, poetry is something I have always been very fascinated about. It was always an enigmatic area for me. For a very long time, I was sceptical of exploring this area. While I strongly believed that I could be a good storyteller, I had my doubts when it came to poetry. I blame it on many of the beautifully written, soul searching, heart-wrenching poems that I have read.

A poet has to express myriads of emotions in very limited words. Every word in a poem is priceless and has a reason for being there. There are no fillers or loose words.

I guess it comes to you when you least expect it to. This year, I have written three poems and all of them have been greatly appreciated by my readers. You can click on the titles below to read them.

1. Death of Dreams
2. Had you known
3. Girl with a dream

Today’s post, however, is about three of the best poems I have ever read. I love reading them every now and then. Sometimes to recall and sometimes to see if like all great literary pieces, the emotions in these poems have grown with age.

Millie’s Mother’s red dress by Carol Lynn Pearson

A sad but very meaningful poem about how a woman in the process of doing everything for her family, forgets to take care of herself. And how in the end she realises that she has not left the right lessons for her children. She has made them very dependent on herself. And having seen their mother sacrifice her needs for her family, they have started to treat their wives the same way, believing that women only exist to fulfil other’s needs.

Here’s my favourite part of the poem:

I was a free ride for everybody, everywhere.
I was the first one up and the last one down
Seven days out of the week.
I always took the toast that got burned,
And the very smallest piece of pie.”
“I look at how some of your brothers
Treat their wives now
And it makes me sick, ’cause it was me
That taught it to them. And they learned,
They learned that a woman doesn’t
Even exist except to give.

Here is a post I wrote sometime back along the same lines – Slow down, Superwoman.

Link to the full poem: Millie’s Mother’s red dress by Carol Lynn Pearson

The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock by T.S.Eliot

Believed to be the first true modernist poem, this poem comes in many folds and is relatable to many even today. The poem is about a middle-aged man Alfred Prufrock who is in search of love and companionship. He is wandering around a city whose atmosphere somehow doesn’t feel right. Alfred is well aware of his growing age. He is intelligent and has seen life at it’s worst and best. Yet he is insecure and hesitant which can be felt in every word of the poem.

If you have read Fault in our Stars, you might be aware of the below stanza.

Let us go then, you and I,
When the evening is spread out against the sky
Like a patient etherized upon a table;
Let us go, through certain half-deserted streets,
The muttering retreats
Of restless nights in one-night cheap hotels
And sawdust restaurants with oyster-shells:
Streets that follow like a tedious argument
Of insidious intent
To lead you to an overwhelming question …
Oh, do not ask, “What is it?”
Let us go and make our visit.

Link to the full poem: The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock by T.S.Eliot 

Will be back with another post soon. Until then Stay safe, Stay happy.

Signing off,

Ashwini

Featured Image: Karolina Grabowska from Pexels