| Naked With Summer In Your Mouth |
| Riding the mountain ridges where the avalanche waits in winter to spill its full moon torrents onto the trembling ski trails- But summer perches atop the boxcars hugging myself in morning cold then drinking the sun's white whiskey and beginning to realize there is no past and no future you're born at this precise moment in the high mountains the roots have climbed your summit Well - that's all very dramatic I hear someone say to myself and it's me saying it: a very ling time later the mrgins and edges of time and place have widened for me euphoria in the blood stream yeast in the gluteus maximus and an obviuse senility send me back into summer climbing the switch back highways reversing again into winter in Arcturus and thePleiades Orion and his dog in the sky where time has lost its boudaries and space jumpstarts to infinity I return to the mountains my roots have climbed your summit -Al Purdy- 1994 |
| This poem is about the poet being in his old age and looks back at the summer tines: "and an obvious senlity/ send me back into summer/ climbing he switchback highways" (ll.22-24). The poet begins to realize that it doesn't matter what the past was or what the future holds for him, but it is this very moment that matter: "and beginning to realize/ there is no past and no future/ you're born at this precise moment" (ll.9-10). He starts to notice little details in life, such as the morning being a bit colder than the rest of the day and he takes in the sun's ray to keep himself warm: "hugging myself in morning cold/ than drinking the sun's white whiskey" (ll.7-8). The poet see the past experiences and times as happy memories for him to look back at: "the margins and edges of time/ and place have widened for me/ euphoria in the blood stream" (ll.18-20). The poet is close to the end of his life but hi is iin good health and looks back at his past experiences in his summers: "I return to the mountains/ my roots have climbed your summit" (ll.30-31). This poet chose some very interesting metaphors for this poem. "hugging myself in the morning cold/ then drinking the sun's white whiskey" (ll.7-8): The poet compares the sun's ray to whiskey because when people drink whiskey they tend to have a burning sensation in their stomache. "Euphoria in the blood" (l.20): By being happy iin the blood, means the poet have many happy memories to look back at to keep hhis blood running. "My roots have climbed your summit" (l.31): The poet is finally on the top and he is able to look back and reflect on everything that has happened to him. This poem makes me think of my grandpa. He is in his eighties and he likes to tell me about the past: "and an obvious senlity/ send me back into summer/ climbing hte switchback highways" (ll.22-24). My grandpa would talk about fond memories of him, my dad, my sisters and me: "the margins and edges of time/ and places have widened for (him)/ euphoria in the blood"(ll.18-20). |