Classic and Contemporary Poetry: Explained

"The Supernatural: A Love Poem" by David Baker is an evocative reflection on memory, desire, and the passage of time, all framed within the context of a nostalgic and almost mystical game of baseball. The poem masterfully interweaves the physical sensations of a summer day—heat, haze, and the crack of baseball bats—with the emotional landscapes of longing and connection. Through this blend of sensory detail and metaphor, Baker explores the enduring power of love and the ways in which it transcends the ordinary moments of life.

Set against the backdrop of "the granular frayed-ends of late light" and the "dead center of a summer field," the poem immediately situates the reader in a space that is both temporal and timeless. The description of the environment, with its "Heat-waves and dust. Dust-haze," and leaves that "burnish like broken-in leather," creates a vivid, palpable atmosphere that serves as the setting for the unfolding narrative.

The speaker's participation in the game, "holding a bat and starting to take my cuts," becomes a focal point for the exploration of youth, camaraderie, and the bittersweet nature of reminiscence. The invocation of a "Ghost runner on third!" blurs the lines between reality and imagination, suggesting the presence of the absent, the felt but unseen forces that shape our experiences and memories.

This moment of play and light-heartedness takes on a deeper significance as the speaker reflects on the nature of the scene, considering whether it is "either memory or metaphor." This contemplation reveals the poem's central theme: the proximity to love, not just as an emotion, but as a state of being that infuses and elevates the ordinary. The "field-chatter" and "batter's breeze" become symbols of this transcendent connection, the shared language of intimacy and understanding.

As the poem progresses, the anticipation of the pitch and the desire to connect with the ball mirror the speaker's longing for connection and fulfillment. The "clarifying-down" of desire across "twenty-five years and some fifty feet of heat-shimmer and loneliness" illustrates the enduring nature of longing and the clarity that can emerge from reflecting on the past.

The climax of the poem, with the speaker swinging at the pitch, transforms the baseball diamond into a metaphorical space where love, memory, and hope converge. The "ghost" runner and the "dazzle of white" at third base morph into the figure of the loved one, a transformation that underscores the poem's meditation on the supernatural elements of love—the way it can manifest, shape reality, and fill absences with presence.

In the final lines, the poem returns to the motifs of "Heat and haze," bringing the narrative full circle, but now with the addition of "You. Waving. Beginning to run this way." This image captures the essence of the poem's title and its exploration of love as a force that transcends the boundaries of time and space, a supernatural element that animates and colors our lives.

"The Supernatural: A Love Poem" is a lyrical and profound meditation on the complexities of love, memory, and the moments that bridge the gap between the tangible and the ineffable. Through its rich imagery and nuanced reflection, Baker invites readers to contemplate the enduring power of love to transform the ordinary into the extraordinary.

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