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Those of us that can remember, do.
We remember where and when and who we reached out to in our confusion and grief. We've healed, sort of. There's a way to go.
I like finding poetry. I like finding words to fit into poetry patterns. The painting below by Ejay Weiss is from the 9/11 Memorial website. It grabbed and held my attention. As I read the description I started plucking words until I had a pile. What to do with a pile of words but make them into an etheree.
First the painting...
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| 9-11 Elegy/Ghost City, Panel 4 by Ejay Weiss https://collection.911memorial.org/Detail/objects/119382 |
If you click on the link, you will find curator notes...that all the words that the etheree below is made from.
Etheree found in notes on 9/11 Elegies
Painting by Ejay
Weiss
Grief
windows
evoke blue
rendered bright by
plumes of smoke and ash.
Enraged red and black earth
low witness of this attack
unthinkable atrocity
ghost footprints of catastrophe
left in a world overcome with absence
poet in conversation, Linda Mitchell
September 2020
Be sure to visit Keisha at Whispers from the Ridge for this week's roundup.
Wow! The art piece with your found etheree are powerful and profound. "Left in a world overcome by absence" speaks volumes for you today and for many who've lost love ones to coronavirus. Hugs!
ReplyDeleteA beautiful and thoughtful tribute, Linda - I was kind of counting on some PF posts to address this day, and I appreciate that you have offered this reflection in the substance of words and that striking image. Hugs to you!
ReplyDeleteThis is beautiful, Linda.
ReplyDeleteThank you.
Wow, Linda. Both the painting and your poem pack a punch. I was struck by the fact that the artist used ash from ground zero in the painting. And the lines from your poem that especially grabbed me are:
ReplyDeleterendered bright by
plumes of smoke and ash.
I've been writing etherees myself this week, so I'm particularly impressed by how well yours works.
I've been playing around with etherees, but nothing this profound, Linda. I guess we will never forget that day, where we were, the terrible & troubling news. Thank you for the painting. I don't believe I've ever seen it, but the hollowness shows it all. Your 'found' words tell us true what it was like and still is, "rendered bright. . ." & could not stop looking. Thank you!
ReplyDeleteI love an etheree - it's not as simple as it would seem - and it is the perfect form for your 9-11 found poem. Every line recaptures those moments of horror ... how could it be... and that painting, too. Ripped apart. Thank you for the profound memorial, Linda - beautifully woven from the fragments.
ReplyDeleteI've been offering my scholars the CNN10 news and a space for their Notice/Wonders in an optional daily routine. As I watched the remembrance of 9/11 this morning before I posted it for them, I was moved to unexpected tears. And now this. More tears. Thank you for helping us remember.
ReplyDeleteYou have undertaken a rich tribute here Linda. Art and words connect so effectively in your tribute etheree poem. I arrived to work in NYC three weeks after 9/11 and ended up staying for six years. It was both raw and rewarding to be in that city across that time.
ReplyDeleteThanks for this powerful tribute, Linda. Both art and etheree capture the essence of the profound loss and grief that still haunt us today.
ReplyDeleteBoth the painting and your etheree pack a powerful remembrance. Thank you.
ReplyDeleteThe combination of the painting and your etheree is powerful. That final line is moving and still raw-- "left in a world overcome with absence". Thank you for this.
ReplyDeleteStunning. Both painting and poem are brimming with emotion. Thank you for bringing this moment back to the forefront this week. Also, thank you for your well wishes my friend! I have been busy serving teachers and students since mid August. I am grateful for every minute of it, though I do hope to recenter myself in my writing. Thanks again for your kind wishes! xx
ReplyDeleteYour found etheree is so powerful, Linda. It's hard to read this poem and not hear it echo with our own time. Ours is a "world overcome with absence."
ReplyDeleteCertainly a moment in time that no one will ever forget... <3
ReplyDeletePowerful poem, Linda. The phrase "low witness" works on many levels and reminds me of what we all witnessed that day.
ReplyDeleteStrong poem and image Linda. your last line fits in with all that's around us today, "left in a world overcome with absence," thanks for keeping us remembering.
ReplyDeleteSorry I am so late to visit your blog from last week. I am calling this period in my life: Life Interrupted (maybe I will write a poem with my feelings revealed). I am glad that I stopped by to read your poem. 9/11 is an important day for me as my town lived through the tragedy (45 lives lost). These lines are a showstopper: "ghost footprints of catastrophe/left in a world overcome with absence." I think I will always remember your poetic offerings each 9/11 day as the bells toll.
ReplyDelete