My Poetry Padlet by Mylaina Ratliff https://padlet.com/ratlifmr/r7ge3l6jurn6 Made with a little mischief en-us 2016-11-08 15:12:40 UTC 2016-11-15 16:31:29 UTC hello@padlet.com Introduction to Poetry Project ratlifmr https://padlet.com/ratlifmr/r7ge3l6jurn6/wish/136119862 Amy Lowell writes, “We should read poetry because only in that way can we know man in all his 
moods – in the most beautiful thoughts of his heart, in his farthest reaches of imagination, in the 
tenderness of his love, in the nakedness and awe of his soul confronted with the terror and 
wonder of the universe.”

To me this means that poetry is a way to convey exactly how you feel, or think, without muddling it up by overthinking. Poetry is putting words to emotions that are otherwise nearly impossible to convey. Poems can be interpreted differently depending on the reader, and in that way poems can be altered to fit what that reader needs at that time. Things that are impossible to explain with words can be expressed through poetry instead. The only way humans can see the complexities of the human soul and mind is through reading and writing poetry.

]]> 2016-11-08 15:23:48 UTC https://padlet.com/ratlifmr/r7ge3l6jurn6/wish/136119862 Poem 1 (Man in all his MOODS) DESERT PLACES ratlifmr https://padlet.com/ratlifmr/r7ge3l6jurn6/wish/137550165 Snow falling and night falling fast, oh, fast 
In a field I looked into going past, 
And the ground almost covered smooth in snow, 
But a few weeds and stubble showing last. 
 
The woods around it have it ---it is theirs. 
All animals are smothered in their lairs. 
I am too absent-spirited to count; 
The loneliness includes me unawares. 
 
And lonely as it is that loneliness 
Will be more lonely ere it will be less--- 
A blanker whiteness of benighted snow 
With no expression, nothing to express. 
 
They cannot scare me with their empty spaces 
Between stars---on stars where no human race is. 
I have it in me so much nearer home 
To scare myself with my own desert places. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The imagery described in the poem is beautiful, my interpretation on the poem is that the speaker is going home and finds a field surrounded by woods and covered in snow. The fact that the speaker is lonely skews his perspective of the beauty around him, so that to him it is a desert place. The poem also seems to me like a metaphor for people who pass by him expressionless, and he goes unnoticed. The woods have it--it is theirs, might mean that others have something he doesn’t and that he’s missing out and is not included which is causing the loneliness. But that he scares himself when he thinks about how small he is compared to the vast empty spaces between the stars. This poem describes loneliness and melancholy.


]]> 2016-11-14 20:46:03 UTC https://padlet.com/ratlifmr/r7ge3l6jurn6/wish/137550165 Poem 2 (Man in all his MOODS) THE SILKEN TENT ratlifmr https://padlet.com/ratlifmr/r7ge3l6jurn6/wish/137550382 She is as in a field a silken tent
At midday when a sunny summer breeze
Has dried the dew and all its ropes spent relent,
So that guys it gently sways at ease,
And its supporting central cedar pole,
That is its pinnacle to heavenward
And signifies the sureness of the soul,
Seems to owe naught to and single cord,
But strictly held by none, is loosely bound
By countless silken ties of love and thought
To everything on earth the compass round,
And only by one’s going slightly taut
In the capriciousness of summer air
Is of the slightest bondage made aware.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The whole poem is a metaphor for a woman. The way I interpreted it is that the woman is so pure hearted that she is heavenly. If it were not for the things that tie her to this earth like love and thought, that like an angel she would ascend elsewhere. She is steady and so sure of herself that her confident posture is like the supporting cedar pole and she did not receive that steadiness from anything but her own self. The poem is lighthearted and tells of love, admiration, and happiness.]]> 2016-11-14 20:46:44 UTC https://padlet.com/ratlifmr/r7ge3l6jurn6/wish/137550382 Poem 3 (Man in all his MOODS) ratlifmr https://padlet.com/ratlifmr/r7ge3l6jurn6/wish/137550520 We wear the mask that grins and lies, 
It hides our cheeks and shades our eyes,-- 
This debt we pay to human guile; 
With torn and bleeding hearts we smile, 
And mouth with myriad subtleties. 
Why should the world be over-wise, 
In counting all our tears and sighs? 
Nay, let them only see us, while 
      We wear the mask. 
 
We smile, but, O great Christ, our cries 
To thee from tortured souls arise. 
We sing, but oh the clay is vile 
Beneath our feet, and long the mile; 
But let the world dream otherwise, 
     We wear the mask! 
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
From my perspective this poem speaks of the pain and heartache African Americans felt during, and after slavery. It also speaks of a great strength. That despite the earth being stained with sin, and the journey they are on is long and difficult. They don’t want to give the people who enslaved them and destroyed their lives the satisfaction of seeing them broken or giving in. They continue living, wearing a smile even though they are heartbroken from the atrocities committed to them. ]]> 2016-11-14 20:47:07 UTC https://padlet.com/ratlifmr/r7ge3l6jurn6/wish/137550520 Poem 4 (Beautiful THOUGHTS of the HEART) STOPPING BY WOODS ON A SNOWY EVENING ratlifmr https://padlet.com/ratlifmr/r7ge3l6jurn6/wish/137550592 Whose woods these are I think I know.
His house is in the village tough;
He will not see me stopping here
To watch his woods fill up with snow.

My little horse must think it queer
To stop without a farmhouse near
Between the woods and frozen lake
The darkest evening of the year.

He gives his harness bells a shake
To ask if there is some mistake.
The only other sound’s the sweep
Of easy wind and downy flake.

The woods are lovely, dark and deep,
But I have promises to keep,
And miles to go before I sleep,
And miles to go before I sleep.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
**FAVORITE POEM**
This beautifully written poem describes a short scene. A man stops to look at the snow fall in the woods. While the horse wonders why they are just standing there, the man just stands to absorb the surroundings, and the peacefulness of the snowfall in the dark woods. He then reminds himself that he has a long way to go, either in general or that night in particular, before he is ready to rest and relax. When I was younger the only part of this poem I knew was the very last stanza, but It’s always been one of my favorite poems because of it. It’s beautiful. The way the rhyming is presented is cool in how it takes the ending word, of the third line of each stanza, to set up the next stanzas rhymes. It has a great rhythm, and describes the feelings of the heart while looking at something beautiful, but knowing you have to move on soon.]]> 2016-11-14 20:47:17 UTC https://padlet.com/ratlifmr/r7ge3l6jurn6/wish/137550592 Poem 5 (Beautiful THOUGHTS of the HEART) AMERICA ratlifmr https://padlet.com/ratlifmr/r7ge3l6jurn6/wish/137550842 Although she feeds me bread of bitterness,
And sinks into my throat her tiger’s tooth,
Stealing my breath of life, I will confess
I love this cultured hell that tests my youth!
Her vigor flows like tides into my blood,
Giving me strength erect against her hate.
Her bigness sweeps my being like a flood.
Yet, as a rebel fronts a king in state,
I stand within her walls with not a shred
Of terror, malice, not a word of jeer.
Darkly I gaze into the days ahead,
And see her might and granite wonders there,
Beneath the touch of Time’s unerring hand,
Like priceless treasures sinking into the sand.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

To me the poem is stating that although America is slowly draining the speaker of their youth and life. That despite the bitterness and hate America throws his way, that what she stands for and her vitality are what gives him strength to stand against the bad. America is big and makes him feel small but he feels no hate/fear and could say nothing bad about her. He also sadly thinks of the future as time slowly eats away at all that America has built. I believe almost every American can relate to this poem, and it really puts thing into perspective in ways that only poetry can achieve. Despite the bad and the ugly things America holds, underneath it all America is strong. What America stands for should give us strength. This is an important message anytime but especially now.]]> 2016-11-14 20:48:12 UTC https://padlet.com/ratlifmr/r7ge3l6jurn6/wish/137550842 Poem 6 (The farthest reaches of IMAGINATION) THE MARTIAN SENDS A POSTCARD HOME ratlifmr https://padlet.com/ratlifmr/r7ge3l6jurn6/wish/137551133 Caxtons are mechanical birds with many wings
And some are treasured for their markings---
They cause the eyes to melt
or the body to shriek without pain.
I have never seen one fly, but
Sometimes they perch on the hand.
Mist is when the sky is tired of flight
And rests its soft machine on the ground:
Then the world is dim and bookish
Like engravings under tissue paper.
Rain is when the earth is television.
It has the property of making colors darker.
Model T is a room with the lock inside---
A key is turned to the free world
For movement, so quick there is a film
To watch for anything missed.
But time is tied to the wrist
Or kept in a box, ticking with impatience.
In homes, a haunted apparatus sleeps,
That snores when you pick it up.
If the ghost cries, they carry it
To their lips and soothe it to sleep
With sounds. And yet, they wake it up
Deliberately, by tickling with a finger.
Only young are allowed to suffer
Openly. Adults go to a punishment room
With water but nothing to eat.
They lock the door and suffer noises
Alone. No one is exempt
and everyone’s pain has a different smell.
At night, when all the colors die,
They hide in pairs
And read about themselves---
In color, with their eyelids shut.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
This poem is a very colorful way of describing very simple everyday things for us humans, but when the writer speaks from the perspective of someone who knows nothing of human cultures. It requires a huge amount of imagination to be able to see things you see all the time in a new light, and to pretend you have no idea what it could mean. At first he describes books as if they were birds that make us cry, he describes fog as a fluffy cloud machine resting on the ground, then he describes a car, a wristwatch, a dog, a baby, a bathroom, bedroom, and even dreams. All things nearly every human being is aware of. That’s why this poem perfectly portrays man’s farthest reaches of the imagination.]]> 2016-11-14 20:49:06 UTC https://padlet.com/ratlifmr/r7ge3l6jurn6/wish/137551133 Poem 7 (The tenderness of LOVE) FUNERAL BLUES ratlifmr https://padlet.com/ratlifmr/r7ge3l6jurn6/wish/137551318 Stop all the clocks, cut off the telephone,
Prevent the dog from barking with a juice bone,
Silence the pianos and with muffled drum
Bring out the coffin, let the mourners come.

Let aeroplanes circle moaning overhead
Scribbling on the sky the message He Is Dead,
Put crepe bows round the white necks of the public doves,
Let the traffic policemen wear black cotton gloves.

He was my North, my South, my East and West,
My working week and my Sunday rest,
My noon, my midnight, my talk, my song;
I thought that love would last for ever: I was wrong.

The stars are not wanted now: put out every one,
Pack up the moon and dismantle the sun,
Pour away the ocean and sweep up the woods;
For nothing now can ever come to any good.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
This poem describes how it feels to lose someone you love. That you want everything in the world to stop and mourn your lost loved one with you. The world on the other hand, always continues on as if nothing had happened at all. Which probably hurts the most. The poem talks about the world should stop, people should know that he was my everything, nothing will ever be good again, especially the things that were probably once thought of as great aspects of life. This poem is just all about love and the heartache left behind. ]]> 2016-11-14 20:49:44 UTC https://padlet.com/ratlifmr/r7ge3l6jurn6/wish/137551318 Poem 8 (The SOUL exposed to Wonder of the universe) HARLEM {A DREAM DEFERRED} ratlifmr https://padlet.com/ratlifmr/r7ge3l6jurn6/wish/137551448 What happens to a dream deferred?
Does it dry up
Like a raisin in the sun?
Or fester like a sore---
And then run?
Does it stink like rotten meant?
Or crust and sugar over---
Like a syrupy sweet?

Maybe it just sags
Like a heavy load.

Or does it explode?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The speaker wonders if when a dream is postponed or put off if it shrivels up and dies, festers and rots, or if it hardens, sags or explodes. This to me seems pretty philosophical giving a dream a hypothetical physical form to try and explain what happens when its pushed aside. With the way it’s written you start to think maybe it explodes. That could mean that a dream deferred literally explodes if it was something physical, but I take it to mean that when people dreams are pushed aside that one day it will explode, in retaliation maybe or in the sudden violent death of the dream]]> 2016-11-14 20:50:10 UTC https://padlet.com/ratlifmr/r7ge3l6jurn6/wish/137551448 Poem 9 (The SOUL exposed to WONDER of the universe) ratlifmr https://padlet.com/ratlifmr/r7ge3l6jurn6/wish/137551841  To see a world in a grain of sand
And a heaven in a wild flower,
Hold infinity in the palm of your hand
And eternity in an hour.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Despite being one of the shortest poems we read this one is full of philosophy. The theme of the poem is seeing the Wonder of the universe, in nature and in seemingly insignificant things. It reminds me of “Horton hears a who” where a whole universe resides in a speck of dust on a clover. Nature itself is timeless, and when you look at something as beautifully simple as a flower it’s not hard to imagine a higher being creating everything surrounding you.]]> 2016-11-14 20:51:43 UTC https://padlet.com/ratlifmr/r7ge3l6jurn6/wish/137551841 Poem 10 (The SOUL exposed to TERROR of the universe) BALLAD OF BIRMINGHAM ratlifmr https://padlet.com/ratlifmr/r7ge3l6jurn6/wish/137552017 “Mother dear, may I go downtown
Instead of out to play,
And march the street of Birmingham
In a freedom March today?”

“No, baby, no, you may not go,
For the dogs are fierce and wild,
And clubs and hoses, guns and jails
Aren’t good for a little child.”

“But, mother, I won’t be alone.
Other children will go with me,
And march the streets of Birmingham
To make our country free.”

 “No, baby, no, you may not go,
For I fear those guns will fire.
But you may go to church instead
And sing in the children’s choir.”

She has combed and brushed her night-dark hair,
And bathed rose petal sweet,
And drawn white gloves on her small brown hands,
And white shoes on her feet.

The mother smiled to know her child
Was in the sacred place,
But that smile was the last smile
To come upon her face.
For when she heard the explosion,
Her eyes grew wet and wild.
She raced through the streets of Birmingham
Calling for her child.

She clawed through bits of glass and brick,
Then lifted out a show.
“O here’s the shoe my baby wore,
But, baby, where are you?”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The poem depicts a mother and child talking. The little girl wants to go fight for her rights by attending a freedom march, but her mother says no it’s too dangerous I don’t want you to get hurt. You can go sing in the choir at church, which is supposed to be a safe and sacred place. The place the mother thought she knew was safe and best for her child. When the church was bombed and the mother hears the explosion it tells us of the mother’s reaction “her eyes grew wet and wild” ”calling for her child”. Such a terrible day in history depicted in this poem. The mother trying to find her baby in the rubble of a church. If that’s not an accurate portrayal of the terror of the universe I don’t know what is.]]> 2016-11-14 20:52:23 UTC https://padlet.com/ratlifmr/r7ge3l6jurn6/wish/137552017 (NAKEDNESS OF THE SOUL) CAR RADIO- {Twenty One Pilots ratlifmr https://padlet.com/ratlifmr/r7ge3l6jurn6/wish/137552471 This band is my favorite because of the very deep lyrics in most of their music. This song really speaks to me because when left alone with no distractions my mind can run off to scary places. That is what the song is about, someone took away the distraction which for him (and I) is music. Then his thoughts get very deep and sort of existential. He wishes he had something to distract him from his thoughts, and things start to get more hectic as he thinks more deeply. His overactive imagination causes him distress. ]]> 2016-11-14 20:54:06 UTC https://padlet.com/ratlifmr/r7ge3l6jurn6/wish/137552471 ASL IMAGINE ratlifmr https://padlet.com/ratlifmr/r7ge3l6jurn6/wish/137552639 ASL is visual/physical poetry that you can feel. Even if you can't understand what's being said, I find it incredibly moving, especially in song form.]]> 2016-11-14 20:54:46 UTC https://padlet.com/ratlifmr/r7ge3l6jurn6/wish/137552639 (NAKEDNESS OF THE SOUL) DISENCHANTED - {My Chemical Romance ratlifmr https://padlet.com/ratlifmr/r7ge3l6jurn6/wish/137552786 Another sad/angry song (Don't judge!) This song was my favorite for years, and the band itself was a huge part of my adolescence.  I always found it beautiful and poetic. The song was written because of a falling out between two friends (the lead singers of two different bands), both had been getting into drugs and alcohol and it was ruining their lives. When the singer of this band wanted to turn his life around and realized their relationship was toxic. The other friend got mad,  and the friendship was broken off at that point. The singer of this band is now completely sober and has been a big inspiration for millions of people around the world who could relate to the music him and his band created. A common saying is "this band saved my life" because they cover hard topics with brutally honest emotion that I think people may need sometimes. For me music is exactly what Amy Lowell describes poetry as. Witnessing man in all his moods, the nakedness of the soul, tenderness of love and thoughts of the heart can all be portrayed though music as well.]]> 2016-11-14 20:55:17 UTC https://padlet.com/ratlifmr/r7ge3l6jurn6/wish/137552786 (The tenderness of LOVE) I'LL COVER YOU ratlifmr https://padlet.com/ratlifmr/r7ge3l6jurn6/wish/137701705 Live in my house, I'll be your shelter 
 Just pay me back 
 With one thousand kisses 
 Be my lover, I'll cover you 
 Open your door, I'll be your tenant 
 Don't got much baggage, to lay at your feet 
 But sweet kisses, I've got to spare 
 I'll be there and I'll cover you 
 
I think they meant it 
 When they said you can't buy love 
 Now I know you can rent it 
 A new lease you are my love 
 On life, be my life 
 
Just slip me on, I'll be your blanket 
 Wherever, whatever I'll be your coat 
 You'll be my king, and I'll be your castle 
 No, you be my queen, and I'll be your moat 
 
I think they meant it 
 When they said you can't buy love 
 Now I know you can rent it 
 A new lease you are my love 
 On life, oh my life 
 
I've longed to discover 
 Something as true as this is 
 So with a thousand sweet kisses, I'll cover you 
 (If you're cold and you're lonely) 
 With a thousand sweet kisses, I'll cover you 
 (You've got one nickel only) 
 With a thousand sweet kisses, I'll cover you 
 (When you're worn out and tired) 
 With a thousand sweet kisses, I'll cover you 
 (When your heart has expired) 
 
Oh lover, I'll cover you, yeah 
 Oh lover, I'll cover you 
 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
My interpretation of this song is that essentially in a time where aids was rampaging through lives, these two found love. Knowing that their days are numbered they understand the meaning of love, that you can only rent love for as long as you have on this Earth. The song is also in my opinion marriage vows in a time where gay marriage was nearly impossible. They cover all the bases in the song they promise to keep loving each other in sickness and in health, for rich or poor, and even in death. 
]]> 2016-11-15 13:31:41 UTC https://padlet.com/ratlifmr/r7ge3l6jurn6/wish/137701705 (The tenderness of LOVE) I'LL COVER YOU {REPRISE ratlifmr https://padlet.com/ratlifmr/r7ge3l6jurn6/wish/137701978 Live in my house, I'll be your shelter 
 Just pay me back 
 With one thousand kisses 
 Be my lover and I'll cover you, yeah 
 
Open your door, I'll be your tenant 
 Don't got much baggage, to lay at your feet 
 But sweet kisses, I've got to spare 
 I'll be there and I'll cover you, Oh woah 
 
I think they meant it 
 When they said you can't buy love 
 Now I know you can rent it 
 A new lease you are my love 
 One life, all my life 
 
I've longed to discover 
 (Oooooo) 
 Something as true as this is, Yeah 
 (Oooooo) 
 (So with a thousand sweet kisses, I'll cover you) 
 If you're cold and you're lonely 
 (With a thousand sweet kisses, I'll cover you) 
 You've got one nickel only 
 (With a thousand sweet kisses, I'll cover you) 
 When you're worn out and tired 
 (With a thousand sweet kisses, I'll cover you) 
 When your heart has expired 
 
(Oh lover, I'll cover you,) 
 Oh Lover, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah 
 Oh lover, I'll cover you 
 (525600 minutes) 
 (525000 seasons of... Love) 
 I'll cover you, oh 
 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
This song comes after one of the people has died and left the other broken hearted. Even after death the man repeats the promises they made to each other and essentially thanks the other for sharing their love with him and helping him to understand what true love is. He promises to never stop loving her.]]> 2016-11-15 13:32:23 UTC https://padlet.com/ratlifmr/r7ge3l6jurn6/wish/137701978 (The SOUL exposed to WONDER of the universe) SEASONS OF LOVE - A ratlifmr https://padlet.com/ratlifmr/r7ge3l6jurn6/wish/137705601 Five hundred twenty-five thousand 
Six hundred minutes, 
Five hundred twenty-five thousand 
Moments so dear 
 Five hundred twenty-five thousand 
Six hundred minutes 
How do you measure, measure a year? 
 In daylights, in sunsets, in midnights 
In cups of coffee 
In inches, in miles, in laughter, in strife 
 In five hundred twenty-five thousand 
Six hundred minutes 
How do you measure a year in the life? 
 How about love? How about love? 
How about love? Measure in love 
 Seasons of love 
Seasons of love 
 Five hundred twenty-five thousand 
Six hundred minutes 
Five hundred twenty-five thousand 
Journeys to plan 
 Five hundred twenty-five thousand 
Six hundred minutes 
How do you measure the life 
Of a woman or a man? 
 In truths that she learned 
Or in times that he cried 
In bridges he burned 
Or the way that she died 
 It's time now to sing out 
Tho' the story never ends 
Let's celebrate 
Remember a year in the life of friends 
 Remember the love 
(Oh you got to, got to) 
Remember the love 
(Remember the love) 
Seasons of love 
(Measure measure you life in love) 
Seasons of love 
Seasons of love

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

This song puts in perspective some of the ups and downs of life, but also lets us know that love makes everything bearable. It's a great philosophy to measure your life's worth in love. 
]]> 2016-11-15 13:40:23 UTC https://padlet.com/ratlifmr/r7ge3l6jurn6/wish/137705601 (The SOUL exposed to WONDER of the universe) FINALE ratlifmr https://padlet.com/ratlifmr/r7ge3l6jurn6/wish/137706254 There is no future 
 There is no past 
 Thank God this 
 Moment's not the last 
 
There's only us 
 There's only this 
 Forget, regret or 
 Life is yours to miss 
 No other road, no other way 
 No day but today 
 
 I can't control 
 (Will I lose my dignity) 
 My destiny 
 (Will someone care) 
 I trust my soul 
 (Will I wake tomorrow) 
 My only goal 
 (From this nightmare) 
 Is to be 
 
Without You 
 (There's only now) 
 The Hand Gropes 
 (There's only here) 
 The Ear Hears 
 (Give in to love) 
 The Pulse Beats 
 (Or live in fear) 
 Life Goes On 
 (No other path) 
 But I'm Gone 
 (No other way) 
 'Cause I die without you 
 (No day but today) 
 
I die without you 
 (No day but today) 
 I die without you 
 (No day but today) 
 I die without you 
 (No day but today) 
 
I die without you 
 (No day but today) 
 I die without you 
 (No day but today) 
 No day but today

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

This is one of my favorite songs of the whole musical because it highlights that you should live every day s if it were your last, to again measure your life in love and the greatest moments. Focus on today and the past doesn't exist and enither does the future, it's a really great way to move on in life just living for today, while loving with all your heart
]]> 2016-11-15 13:41:45 UTC https://padlet.com/ratlifmr/r7ge3l6jurn6/wish/137706254 ASL PART OF YOUR WORLD ratlifmr https://padlet.com/ratlifmr/r7ge3l6jurn6/wish/137723367 Another example of the powerful feelings conveyed through ASL. The language when it's paired with song is like a dance of hands and facial expressions. It's probably the most literal form of interpretive dance.]]> 2016-11-15 14:18:13 UTC https://padlet.com/ratlifmr/r7ge3l6jurn6/wish/137723367