Today is the first Wednesday of August, and I thought that 17-year-old Chanie Gorkin's "Bad Day" poem might be just perfect for an Insecure Writer's Support Group post. Chanie (a soon to be 12th grader in Brooklyn) wrote the poem last year and based it on Hasidic philosophy. The reason why I think it's perfect is because the poem has two meanings. When read top to bottom it has an entirely different tone than when read from bottom to top. Anyone who writes can appreciate this dual meaning of words and how oftentimes we must force ourselves to gain a new perspective on our work to see it in some meaningful way. I've even heard of writers reading their own words back to front in an attempt to catch errors. Chanie's poem is brilliant and wonderful and I think every single one of us can find some meaning in what she says. After all, there is power in insecurity once we learn how to channel it into something positive.
Today was the absolute worst day ever
And don't try to convince me that
There's something good in every day
Because, when you take a closer look,
This world is a pretty evil place.
Even if
Some goodness does shine through once in a while
Satisfaction and happiness don't last.
And it's not true that
It's all in the mind and heart
Because
True happiness can be obtained
Only if one's surroundings are good
It's not true that good exists
I'm sure you can agree that
The reality
Creates
My attitude
It's all beyond my control
And you'll never in a million years hear me say that
Today was a good day.
(Now read from bottom to top).
I won't be posting Friday as I have a friend coming to visit from out of town (which is exciting). I'll see you Monday.
'tis an evil place, ebil and vile...
ReplyDeleteI remember seeing that poem in a YouTube video and it is absolutely brilliant. I prefer the backwards version. Because no, this is not an evil place - there is still good and there is still hope.
ReplyDeleteEnjoy Friday with your friend!
AWESOME post,Michael! Yes, it's all about how you read what you're given.
ReplyDeleteThere's an AIDS PSA like that.
ReplyDeleteIngenious. Thanks for sharing :-)
ReplyDeleteAnna from Elements of Writing
I like it better reading it from bottom to top. Interesting poem.
ReplyDeleteI saw that poem once before. It's very clever.
ReplyDeleteThat is a cool poem.
ReplyDeleteDitto, the cool poem. and yes, very clever!
ReplyDeleteWow! I'd never heard of this wonderful poem. Thank you for it.
ReplyDeleteIt's all a matter of perspective, baby. :))
ReplyDeleteI saw that poem someplace else. Love it.
ReplyDeleteThat's a really creative poem. Thanks for sharing; I hadn't seen it before. We can always use a change of perspective, a paradigm shift--especially the writers in us. Hope you're having a fun weekend!
ReplyDelete