Poetics 5

After reading Brainard’s book I was almost worried that I wouldn’t be able to compose anything that Brainard had not written. Brainard lists so many memories that are specific, and yet many of his memories are universal. Childhood memories listed by Brainard were especially inspiring to me while writing this poem. One “I remember” by Brainard that stands out to me is “I remember don’t step on the cracks or you’ll break your mothers back.” This line is one of those personal universal lines. I relate to this line because I physically remember trying to avoid stepping on cracks thinking something bad might happen to my mother’s back.
The “I remember” poem was the first poem that really made me look at my self. In the end this poem felt the most like a self-portrait. I chose to focus on childhood memories because I am removed enough from them that I can see them clearly, however I still feel very connected with them. The most difficult part of writing this poem was choosing what was important. I wrote two separate drafts of this poem, and combined my favorite memories in the final draft. While recalling and writing memories I trusted my mind to travel in the right direction. One memory reminded me of the next, and for the most part my memories ordered them selves. I enjoyed this assignment.