Dates

GRACE CAVALIERI (1937 - )
Dates


The silver from my mother's mirror
gleams its stories
toward a light which drops and never breaks.
It says to tell the truth and

permanently shining, brings forth
an original day bright as this one
where children and other small creatures
played without threat

but the child's story is never without fear – is it –
and seems to be made of remainders which either
want for love or some relief from it.

In the third grade the pyramids were presented to us
by Miss O'Malley
so kind that she would –
in honor of learning –
give us the key to Egypt
if she could.
Who would like to bring dates for all to taste?
Who can do this on the lunch hour? She asked,
Naturally I
-who could not imagine how -
said I would -
and, like a child with enough money to spend, ran
home with only one hour, one hour to ease
my dear mother who probably had
little money in the house, yet who bravely asked
“Shouldn't you buy two packages for the class”
I said No.
Love and fear divided in my mind between
an ocean of children
and my mother's troubled face,
“One package is all I need” I lied,
“Someone else will bring the rest"
(Children spend so much time persuading –
no wonder no one believes them).
Eight dates for twenty children
which would taste so sweet -
Miss O'Malley, always kind, cut the tiny squares
and I kept interrupting, hoping they
wouldn't notice. After all
there wasn't water in the land of pyramids ... was
there … and
not too many trees
probably hungry people and small rations there as
well.

That day every one of us was a reflection of the other-
The children who ate their portions,
the mother at home worrying about her daughter's gift
the child thinking about her mother's face
and Miss O'Malley who, kind and earnest,
taught us all about a hardy people in an arid land
who gave what they had and could give nothing more.

http://www.poetry.com/greatestpoems/poem.asp?title=Dates&author=Grace+Cavalieri
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Despite the length of the poem, I actually enjoyed and understood at least the literal level. It was interesting to know that dates were not the numbers on the calendar but are fruits. The poem starts off talking about a mirror and children. There is a girl who volunteered to bring dates to class. However, she did not live in affluence. She decided to bring only one packet of dates for twenty students. Her mother was worried that it would not be enough. The teacher does not saying anything about the amount but kindly splits the dates. In the end, the author writes her reflection about the girl’s situation. The speaker varies throughout the poem therefore the tone varies. It is an adult speaking for the first three stanzas, then a girl on the fourth stanza, and the same adult speaks at the last stanza. It might be the same speaker: a woman who looks back on her childhood. I had a hard time finding the intention of this poem. I came up with three themes: reflection of oneself, children's purity, and service.

When we Two parted

George Gordon Byron, Lord Byron. 1788–1824

When we Two parted

When we two parted
In silence and tears,
Half broken-hearted
To sever for years,
Pale grew thy cheek and cold,
Colder thy kiss;
Truly that hour foretold
Sorrow to this.

The dew of the morning
Sunk chill on my brow—
It felt like the warning
Of what I feel now.
Thy vows are all broken,
And light is thy fame:
I hear thy name spoken,
And share in its shame.

They name thee before me,
A knell to mine ear;
A shudder comes o'er me—
Why wert thou so dear?
They know not I knew thee,
Who knew thee too well:
Long, long shall I rue thee,
Too deeply to tell.

In secret we met—
In silence I grieve,
That thy heart could forget,
Thy spirit deceive.
If I should meet thee
After long years,
How should I greet thee?
With silence and tears.

http://www.poetry.com/greatestpoems/poem.asp?title=When+We+Two+Parted&author=George+Gordon%2C+Lord+Byron
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This poem reminds me of the famous tragic love story Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare. Since it uses fifteenth century English words(‘thee’, ‘thy’, ‘wert’) and the story is about two lovers who are part from each other. The poem is very descriptive; I was able to draw pictures in my head. It is their last encounter thus they stand in front of each other just gazing. I realize ‘silence and tears’ are seen in the first and second stanza. The two lovers breaks up in ‘silence and tears’ and if they meet again, they will still be in ‘silence and tears.’ It is hard to figure out if the speaker is a woman or a man.