Forehead

I first read this a few months ago, and it's taken me a while to decide whether or not I like it.  And I've decided that while there are a couple bits I don't like, I do like it very much overall.

It's longer than what I usually post here, but hopefully worth it.

Forehead by David Rivard

I love you

I know as much as anything

for your courage

so companionably invisible

as it is

that it passes mostly

as simple

good sense.  I don't mean you're

practical at all- god forbid-

only persistent

as far as dying brothers and cold calls

are concerned- not violent,

not weak, but like a lantern afloat on a wave

open if necessary

to sinking your light

offshore.  Onshore

I am as you would know

strongly sometimes

impatient & inside a swarm of loud thoughts

self-absorbed & locked-up.

If you were to die

who would remove me

from those thoughts?

When you lean your forehead

against mine

what you hear inside there

are all those 

sounds likely, vibrations

like windowpanes rattled by headland squalls

or bullet trains

late forever & loaded down

with passengers green

as hoodie-wearing witches,

I lean my forehead against

your forehead

gently knowing both 

will shortly vanish.

"First of all," says Virgil, "find

a protected place

for the bees

to make their

honey, a place that's 

safe from wind." 

I think I need to lighten up because the thing that originally bothered me about this, and he does this in other poems I've read, is the use of '&' instead of 'and'.  What's that about?

  

Now that I like it, I don't know why it took me so long to come around.  I remember the 'dying brothers and cold calls' line felt too specific, like it shut me out rather than bringing me in, but I don't feel that way about it now.  The part that kept me coming back was 'like a lantern afloat on a wave/open if necessary/to sinking your light/offshore.'   I thought that was a lovely image and a wonderful way to think about courage and I think the whole thing is very beautiful and vulnerable and tender.

But what do you think?

I found this in the July/August issue of The American Poetry Review and as far as I know it hasn't been published in a book, but Rivard's two most recent collections are Sugartown and Bewitched Playground.

Comments

[jc]

As I've said before, I'm no expert on these sorts of things. But my initial impression, based on just one reading is favourable.

I loved 'I dont mean you're practical - god forbid'. It struck a chord as sometimes I can have a lot of affection and warmth and affection for someone for my own reasons when that same person to so many others seems a total waste of space.

But I have to admit that the last few lines sort of threw me.....why the quote???

Oh and I'd never have picked up the '&' instead of 'and' thingy if you hadn't mentioned it. Maybe its down to the fact that I'm reading more and more stuff on a computer screen, where people use '&' more often than they would if putting it on a printed page.

And its so nice to have you back.

[mjrc]

"I am as you would know
strongly sometimes
impatient & inside a swarm of loud thoughts
self-absorbed & locked-up."

um, yes, that speaks to (of) me!

hope all is well, btw. you've been quiet for a while so i'm glad to see you're back. : )

[Greer]

JC- the quote at the end threw me first too, I was so glad you said that! It doesn't now though, I guess I got used to it and I like it now. And that's a good point about the '&', maybe it bothered me so much because I read this in a magazine at first. But still, what does it mean, why does he do it? Is it a hipster thing? Are we supposed to believe he tapped this out on his iPhone in between shifts tending bar?

Hi Marcy, I related to that part too :). And thank you both so much!

[Agnes]

I too loved "I don't mean you're
practical at all- god forbid", it makes it seem more personal, more intimate. Before I read your comment about the lantern line Greer, I also thought 'wow, what a beautiful image', and found myself reading that part a few times before moving on to the rest. The line 'inside a swarm of loud thoughts' made me think of Sylvia Plath, before I even got to the part about the bees, which then of course reminded me of her own bee poems. I really like this one Greer, great choice!

[adam]

I like the idea of a poet running out of their own words and unable to quite say what they mean, and having to resort to somebody else's words to finish off. The bees in their hive / thoughts in our heads link is good, and calling the thing 'Forehead' brings this home to. I remember reading somewhere that the thing about 'rubbing noses' is a western misunderstanding, that actually what's going on, the companionable gesture, is one of touching foreheads together in absolute trust and togetherness. I find that I like verse with short lines like this, as a rule - little bursts of ideas, but also room for playing with units of meaning, as you negotiate line endings and sentences dancing with each other -

I lean my forehead against
your forehead
gently knowing both

is lovely but is then caught by

will vanish shortly

Maybe the first meanings you can tease out give you the right to claim that ambiguity. Hope so.

[Melissa Donovan]

You are more patient than I. A poem has one or two reads to capture my interest and then I move on. I liked this one toward the end, but the beginning was a bit dull, I thought. Not enough action and imagery to fire my imagination, but I do like the sentiment. Thanks for sharing this one!

[Greer]

Hi Agnes, I had never read any of Sylvia Plath's poetry so I looked up her bee poems and I think I found what you must be referring to... and I will be thinking about them for a while! Thank you so much for mentioning it and also for leaving your thoughts about this one.

Adam, your comments always help me to see *why* something has a certain effect on me, I'm not able to break it down the way you do on my own. And I loved what you said about the end, about the poet running out of his own words and needing to use someone else's. Lovely.

And Melissa, I guess there was something about this one that kept me coming back, because I really don't force myself to reread things I dislike completely. And as always I like hearing the wide range of opinions on these poems.

[Agnes]

Plath is pretty good at making you think that's for sure! Some serious deciphering skills are needed. I studied her poetry in English lit in my last year of school. I had a wonderful teacher who really took us into the guts of each poem and I've always loved Plath's writing, as weird and tortured as it is. I doubt I would have loved it so much if it wasn't for my teacher though. My favourite of the bee poems is 'The Arrival Of The Bee Box' but my all time favourite Plath poem is 'Black Rook In Rainy Weather'. It's all about (I think) searching for ways to overcome apathy and regret, and is dark and beautiful at the same time. 'Tulips' is a pretty interesting one as well. And if you're after the ultimate in oddness, 'The Applicant' is worth a read too.

[Agnes]

Plath is pretty good at making you think that's for sure! Some serious deciphering skills are needed. I studied her poetry in English lit in my last year of school. I had a wonderful teacher who really took us into the guts of each poem and I've always loved Plath's writing, as weird and tortured as it is. I doubt I would have loved it so much if it wasn't for my teacher though. My favourite of the bee poems is 'The Arrival Of The Bee Box' but my all time favourite Plath poem is 'Black Rook In Rainy Weather'. It's all about (I think) searching for ways to overcome apathy and regret, and is dark and beautiful at the same time. 'Tulips' is a pretty interesting one as well. And if you're after the ultimate in oddness, 'The Applicant' is worth a read too.

[Greer]

Thank you for the recommendations, Agnes! I read through the ones you mentioned last night, and I know it's going to take me a while and many readings to even partially digest them but I did really love the Black Rook one especially. I really appreciate it... since I don't know anything about poetry I don't ever know where to start with a poet and it's very nice to have someone say 'this is what I like' to get me going.

I totally agree that having a good teacher makes all the difference in things like this :)!

[Agnes]

'many readings to even partially digest them' - yes, very much so! They're pretty meaty, that's for sure. It's been ages since I read any poetry - when I was younger I used to gobble it up. You've got me hunting for my favourites again, and looking for new ones, so thanks to you also!