triveni spotlight : 25 july
- Kala Ramesh
- Jul 25, 2022
- 1 min read
triveni spotlight
A FEATURE EVERY ALTERNATE DAY!
hosts: Teji Sethi and Kala Ramesh
guest editor: Scott Mason
Theme: hand play
the visiting nurse
feels for dampness
potted amaryllis
Tom Sacramona
The Heron’s Nest
Vol. XXII, No. 4 (December 2020)
All these poems were originally published in The Heron's Nest. I chose to confine my search there not just for the quality but also for the convenience of its online archive.
Guest Editor: Scott Mason
So lovely and poignant!
Lovely poem and so beautifully explained by Billie Dee!
the visiting nurse
feels for dampness
potted amaryllis
Tom Sacramona
This well balanced poem illustrates how narrow the line between pathos and nurture becomes with invalid care. Though not stated, it suggests through the analogy of the potted amaryllis that the condition is chronic. The "dampness" is both distasteful and a sign of life---every woman/mother knows that.
One is led to wonder about the age of the patient, whether they are permanently impaired, how family is involved . . . In other words, the poem gives the reader just enough information to exercise the imagination.
And then, there's the exquisite blossom of the lily itself---its exuberant color and fragility that lasts a few weeks, then withers back to it's elem…
Most poignant. 'visiting nurse' tells us this patient has only a nurse coming in for a few hours ...
Economy of words and what magic it wields in haiku. Nicely done. Thanks, Scott.
Lovely juxtapose!
I can sense the patient's health condition through this 'potted plant'.
Thank you and so much to learn.