An Abundance of Stafford

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Hey world,
Ok, so in my opinion, you can't have too much of William Stafford - or poetry for that matter! So I have decided to discuss more of Stafford's work...

Here is one of my many favourites by Stafford: 'Poetry'.

Poetry

Its door opens near. It's a shrine
by the road, it's a flower in the parking lot
of The Pentagon, it says, "Look around,
listen. Feel the air." It interrupts
international telephone lines with a tune.
When traffic lines jam, it gets out
and dances on the bridge. If great people get distracted by fame they forget
this essential kind of breathing
and they die inside their gold shell.
When caravans cross deserts
it is the secret treasure hidden under the jewels. Sometimes commanders take take us over, and they

try to impose their whole universe,
how to succeed by daily calculation:
I can't eat that bread.



This poem for me really articulates the power of poetry, and just how important it is-
'This essential kind of breathing'. Stafford's comparison between poetry and breathing makes it clear that, for him, it is a crucial function; a function which, as a poet, I totally agree with. It is a venting of the heart and mind. This poem portrays poetry as a very ebullient art, which, of course, it is. Stafford says poetry replaces the modern world's distractions and frustrations with joy and peace- 'When traffic lines jam, it gets out and dances on the bridge'.

Stafford warns us that if we get distracted by fame, we forget how to breathe, essentially; we can 'die in our gold shells.' People are so focused on material possessions, such as money, that they forget how important it is to be able to embrace the world around them. A gold shell implies people being trapped, like the proverbial 'gilded cage'. We build this shell around ourselves, and get so caught up in our possessions, that we risk becoming shallow. Stafford's verse serves as a reminder that life is so much more than how much money or what type of fancy phone you have. What matters are the very things that poetry expresses- love, hope, joy, empathy, courage, friendship, and countless other abstract nouns to which we mightn't hope to get close without it.

Stafford also says that 'caravans crossing the dessert' contain secret treasure beneath the jewels. Here Stafford says that poetry is far, far, far more precious than any gemstone. I agree.

So, world this is a warning to us all. Poetry is magic contained on a single page, in a single sentence, if need be. Never let that magic get away. Don't trap yourself in a golden shell!


Write on, world.

-A.H 🐝

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