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Monday, April 13, 2015

PO-EMotion #13- Hate



April is National Poetry Month. Every year, my dear friend (and poet Extraordinaire), Mary Lee Hahn chooses a theme, and writes a poem each day. Mary Lee blogs and posts her poems at two different places- YEAR OF READING and a fabulous new poetry blog POETREPOSITORY.

This year, Mary Lee has chosen the theme, "PO-EMotions." She promises, "This year, I will write a poem a day that either evokes an emotion, or uses an emotion word in the title or body of the poem." Her list of emotions is here. I'm joining her, at least some days.

Today's emotion is hate.

"Hate"


Five or six---
Red-faced and furious--
"I hate you!" I scream.
"I hate you!"
I run to bedroom
throw myself across the bed-
my black shoes 
making ugly marks 
on white bedspread
my grandmother rubs my back.
"Hate is an ugly word,"
she says, "Never use the word hate
to talk about people."

Fifty years later
I repeat this mantra.
"Hate is an ugly word,"
I say to my boys.
"Never use the word hate
to talk about people."
And then my sons,
the people I love 
most in the world,
scream across the room,
"I hate you, I hate you."
And I am surprised
at how freely 
that ugly word
rolls off their tongues
and how much it hurts.

(C) Carol Wilcox, 2015



4 comments:

Linda B said...

I just shared my poem at Mary Lee's site, & although I didn't give the detail, the 'learning' is the same. You'll see, Carol. I remember that lesson too. And hearing the word does hurt no matter the saying "sticks and stones. . ." I like the way your tell stories with your poems, so powerful!

Cathy said...

A word that hurts deep into our soul. While your poem makes my heart hurt and has me wishing all will work out in the end, I thought it worked so well as you took us through time and wrapped your story around this strong word.

Cathy

Kimberley Moran said...

This takes my breath away. Words change everything.

Kay said...

I can remember being on both ends of the word--screaming it as a child and hearing it as a mom. It is a word that hurts deeply on both sides.