Classic and Contemporary Poetry: Explained

"Book of Days 7" by Martha Collins presents a striking meditation on transition, innocence, and the human relationship with the elemental forces of existence. Through the juxtaposition of the innocent, instinctual joy of babies on a plane with the speaker's more complex awareness of their situation, Collins explores themes of freedom, memory, and connection to the natural world.

The poem begins with an evocative scene: "On the plane the babies are starting to sing, / wedding themselves to the new world." This image of babies singing embodies a sense of pure, unbridled joy and an instinctive embrace of new beginnings. The term "wedding" suggests a deep, almost sacred union with the unknown, representing the babies' innocent acceptance of and connection to their surroundings.

Collins then shifts the focus to the environment outside the plane, describing it as "soft / and white," with "walls" that are a shade of "blue / that can't get through." This imagery creates a sense of being enveloped in an ethereal, almost otherworldly landscape. The phrase "we're held / by sheer air" underscores the miraculous nature of flight, the delicate balance between the human-made and the elemental that allows for this traversal of vast distances and perspectives.

The repetition of "A blue world" emphasizes the purity and vastness of the sky, a realm of infinite possibility that the babies, with their unjaded sense of wonder, have "not forgotten." This contrast between the babies' instinctual connection to the world and the speaker's need to "remembered again" highlights the distance that grows with age and experience between individuals and their elemental, instinctive selves.

The speaker reflects on their own state of being, "no one holding / me up or down, no strings / attached, no harness / to no balloon, no plodding thing." This expression of unencumbered existence—free from physical or metaphorical restraints—mirrors the initial image of the babies' unselfconscious joy. Yet, for the speaker, this state is marked by a sense of isolation and perhaps longing for connection or grounding.

"Book of Days 7" delves into the complexities of human consciousness and the ways in which we navigate the spaces between freedom and attachment, innocence and experience. Collins crafts a narrative that is both expansive and introspective, inviting readers to contemplate their own relationships with the natural world, the passage of time, and the fundamental human desire for connection and understanding. Through its nuanced imagery and contemplative tone, the poem serves as a reflection on the moments of transition that define and shape our experience of the world.

POEM TEXT: https://capa.conncoll.edu/collins.space.htm#DAYS

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