Starlings in Winter
Chunky and noisy,
but with stars in their black feathers,
they spring from the telephone wire
and instantly
but with stars in their black feathers,
they spring from the telephone wire
and instantly
they are acrobats
in the freezing wind.
And now, in the theater of air,
they swing over buildings,
in the freezing wind.
And now, in the theater of air,
they swing over buildings,
dipping and rising;
they float like one stippled star
that opens,
becomes for a moment fragmented,
they float like one stippled star
that opens,
becomes for a moment fragmented,
then closes again;
and you watch
and you try
but you simply can’t imagine
and you watch
and you try
but you simply can’t imagine
how they do it
with no articulated instruction, no pause,
only the silent confirmation
that they are this notable thing,
with no articulated instruction, no pause,
only the silent confirmation
that they are this notable thing,
this wheel of many parts, that can rise and spin
over and over again,
full of gorgeous life.
over and over again,
full of gorgeous life.
Ah, world, what lessons you prepare for us,
even in the leafless winter,
even in the ashy city.
I am thinking now
of grief, and of getting past it;
even in the leafless winter,
even in the ashy city.
I am thinking now
of grief, and of getting past it;
I feel my boots
trying to leave the ground,
I feel my heart
pumping hard. I want
trying to leave the ground,
I feel my heart
pumping hard. I want
to think again of dangerous and noble things.
I want to be light and frolicsome.
I want to be improbably beautiful and afraid of nothing,
as though I had wings.
I want to be light and frolicsome.
I want to be improbably beautiful and afraid of nothing,
as though I had wings.
~ Mary Oliver
Isaiah 40:31 - “But those who trust in the Lord will find new strength. They will soar on wings like eagles . . .”
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Nota Bene: It’s interesting how poetry works by compression— the careful diction, the nuance of the well chosen word that has multiple layers of meaning . . . the one word that if thoughtfully listened to has clues to so much more that is going on inside the persona of the poem. For example, notice in the next to last verse . . .
“I feel my boots trying to leave the ground.” Why boots? Why not simply “feet” or even “shoes”? But “boots” connote something heavy and cumbersome, something that is weighing the person down, something totally incongruous with taking flight, with lightness of spirit. But there is hope that with the rising of the person’s spirit, the heavy boots will be shaken off, and he or she will rise above whatever circumstances are keeping them earthbound.
“I feel my boots trying to leave the ground.” Why boots? Why not simply “feet” or even “shoes”? But “boots” connote something heavy and cumbersome, something that is weighing the person down, something totally incongruous with taking flight, with lightness of spirit. But there is hope that with the rising of the person’s spirit, the heavy boots will be shaken off, and he or she will rise above whatever circumstances are keeping them earthbound.
Are there other words in the poem that can yield multiple layers of meaning within the context of the poem? Any thoughts on that?
