Only the Faintest Blue by Ada Limón
I am a lazy reader of poetry. By which I mean, I read poetry only when reading an entire book feels like it might be the thing that kills me.
And also, because I am impatient - I cannot read a poem about nature. Maybe I need to meditate more, I don’t know. But if a poem begins with the sound of a belted Kingfisher, I can promise you I won’t make it to the second stanza.
I require at least the faintest outline of a plot in a poem.
As Ada Limón says: Enough of osseous and chickadee and sunflower and snowshoes, maple and seeds, samara and shoot….
Enough! Just give me a story, but make it beautiful.
Here’s the start of a poem I like. It’s called Only the Faintest Blue by the aforementioned Ada Limón.
Later in the poem, she leaves this man. And while they fight, she keeps her head down and packs “like fury was a new smart skill.”
You can read the entire poem here: https://www.poetrynw.org/poetry/ada-limon-only-the-faintest-blue/
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