Blog Post 12

The Speed of Belief

This poem is split into seven parts and describes the death of Tracy K. Smith's father. I think what I especially enjoyed about this section was that I was actually able to understand the poems. I'm not very into poetry and often struggle with finding out what they mean, but this section was pretty straight forward, in my opinion. The one section that really stood out to me was on page 29. The recurring theme was walking, as each stanza ended with the word "walk," but it represented more than just its obvious definition. I think it also represented Smith moving on from her father's death. She writes about him showing up in her dreams and says, "Show them out./ This bed is full. Our limbs tangle in sleep, but our shadows walk." She shows that she doesn't want her father's death to plague her in her sleep anymore. In addition, she writes "Perhaps one day it will be enough to live a few seasons and return to ash./ No children to carry our names. No grief. Life will be a brief, hollow walk." I think she's trying to form a detatchment here from the dead, suggesting the maybe someday there won't be anyone who mourns anymore. Smith is very obviously haunted by her father's death, but I think this poem holds a sense of optimism that she will be able to move on from it some day.