Friday, February 24, 2023

Poetry Friday: Two Ways of Looking at February


February is my least favorite month. 

By February, I'm weary of our Nebraska winter. I'm tired of thinking about negative numbers. I'm annoyed by lashing winds and I'd like to file snow shovels under "Never again." 

So when I came across "February" by Bill Christopherson, I had to share it. (Read it here, at the Poetry Foundation.) The whole poem is only fourteen lines, so I can't share much without violating copyright, but it begins: 


February
by Bill Christopherson 

The cold grows colder, even as the days
grow longer, 


and ends: 


and hope's a reptile waiting for the sun.


Oh, Bill. 

Oh, Bill, I can relate. 

I want to both laugh and cry at this poem, at that line. The bleakness of it delights me and keeps me from taking my February doldrums too seriously. Christopherson's February is a monster from the deep, a demon dragging us into the underworld. Hope has been lying dormant so long that we wonder: is revival possible? 

Every year, I think, "This is it. I'm going to die in this never-ending, sub-zero weather when a pipe bursts and I drown and freeze at the same time. Because: February." 

And yet, it always ends — February, winter, sub-zero temps, my whining. They all go away. But in the depths of February, I like keeping company with pessimistic poets. They feed my melancholy soul. 

However, for those who prefer something less bleak (and to assure you that I'm actually hanging in there and have even had some lovely days and nights this month), I am including a second poem. Sara Teasdale is, shall we say, a bit more optimistic? Her February is no ravenous monster, but rather a sparkling and inviting spirit: 


February Twilight 
by Sara Teasdale 

I stood beside a hill
Smooth with new-laid snow,
A single star looked out
From the cold evening glow.

There was no other creature
That saw what I could see—
I stood and watched the evening star
As long as it watched me.


If you've never felt Christopherson's anxieties, insomnia, or nightmares, Sara may be your cup of February tea. I wish I could be a Sara all the time, but it's more accurate to say that I'm a combo of Bill and Sara, a messy conglomeration of anxiety and appreciation. 

Most of the time, I'm okay with that. 

Except in February. 


~~~~~~~~~~

The Poetry Friday round-up is being hosted this week by the incomparable Tabatha at The Opposite of Indifference

15 comments:

Susan T. said...

I didn't know the Christophersen at all, but I love it. Oh, dear, yes, to "when things in need of doing go undone." I've spent much of the morning trying to rectify just that! I'm going to look for more of Bill C.'s work.

Do you know the James Schuyler poem "February"? It's a favorite of mine: https://writing.upenn.edu/epc/authors/schuyler/schuyler_february.html

Tabatha said...

One more February poem for you!
“February” by Margaret Atwood

Winter. Time to eat fat
and watch hockey. In the pewter mornings, the cat,
a black fur sausage with yellow
Houdini eyes, jumps up on the bed and tries
to get onto my head. It’s his
way of telling whether or not I’m dead.
If I’m not, he wants to be scratched; if I am
He’ll think of something.

(there's more https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/47787/february-56d2288025b1e)

jama said...

Thanks for both poems -- I'm probably a little bit of both too. Anxiety and insomnia for sure. Would be nice to be Sara all the way, but let's get real. Still, February this year seems to have flown by, so I shouldn't complain. And we haven't been buried in snow like some other places -- some coming tomorrow, though, our first this season, believe it or not.

tanita✿davis said...

I have to say that I've never quite felt February was dragging me down to the underworld... (a heatwave in midsummer? YES) my distaste for the lingering days of Winter has been mild. Until THIS year, when California kicked things off with Hello From Climate Change 100 Year Floods, followed by now having snow statewide.

Yikes.

But, THIS February poem is one of my very, very favorite - because when I'm not ping-ponging between, "UGH, WHY CAN'T I FINISH ANYTHING" and "Isn't this a gorgeous, still, frigid night" this feeling comes, sometimes, to make me smile:

As the stores close, a winter light
opens air to iris blue,
glint of frost through the smoke
grains of mica, salt of the sidewalk.
As the buildings close, released autonomous
feet pattern the streets
in hurry and stroll; balloon heads
drift and dive above them; the bodies
aren't really there...(the rest here - https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/42535/february-evening-in-new-york)

L'chaim, friend!

Alan j Wright said...

It seems February is a porblematic month in both hemispheres, Karen. Your shared poems confirm this for me. In Australia, February frequently brings 'the February Dragon' where the last burst of summer all too often delivers hot dry weather and bushfires. It is also associated with the commencement of the new school year -so, it has baggage.

Linda Mitchell said...

I agree with you! February is my least favorite month--and this year has been so weird with the weather fluctuations. I'm swooning over the Sara Teasdale poem...just gorgeous. Thank you.

Karen Edmisten said...

Susan, I didn't know the James Schuyler poem. I love it! Wow, the color that he's woven through that poem. Thank you!

Tabatha, I considered that Atwood poem, too, lol! Love it. February has inspired many a lament. Thanks for sharing the link to that one.

Jama, yes, let's be real, for sure. Anyone claiming to be a Sara 24/7 is probably in need of therapy for their denial. :D I'm so glad you've had a mild February!

Tanita, oh, yes to the heat waves being hell! :D Heat drags me down, perhaps even more than cold, but cold stresses me out more, with worries about frozen pipes and power outages. Ugh, I was meant to live in a steady temp of 70 degrees. :) And, oh, you all in California have really been through it this year! Flooding terrifies me too (I still remember being rowed away in a boat from our home in Alaska, in 1967, when the Cheney river flooded. Scars!)

And that Levertov poem! (I love how this is turning into a showcase for February poems!) Smiling, smiling, smiling.

Alan, the thought of bushfires is terrifying, too. On a lighter note, your comment made me think we should all do a poem challenge: "February's Baggage." :D

Linda, I'm so happy to offer a little swooning time in this baggage-filled month!


Linda B said...

Oh, Karen, our February has been both chilling and sunny. Unfortunately, Denver's snowiest month is March & while this weekend is warmer, we have snow coming, yes, March 1st. Thanks for the poems, the reptile line is certainly apt & with others sharing, I guess we all have sound opinions about February! Best wishes for you for a grander, sunnier, March.

Carol Varsalona said...

Karen, most people are complaining about the significant climate change this February. We went from 81 degrees to cold in one day. The fireplace is pumping just to bring the temp up in the house. We saw the first buds come way too early but in all of that there is hope and spring on the way. Thank you for the amazing poems and a great poetry moment.

Bridget Magee said...

This post and these poems have it all, Karen, the highs and lows of February. Lucky for all of us it is always the shortest month. Thanks for sharing your whine - here's to you, cheers! *clink* :)

Linda said...

We haven't had many cold days or snow here so I haven't felt winter anxiety so I am feeling more Sara this year. : )
Thank you for sharing both poems here.

Anonymous said...

Oh boy, I’m glad February is a short month. That first poem is such fun. If we can’t beat February maybe we can laugh at it.

Denise Krebs said...

Karen, woohoo! You've almost made it. Two more days of February, and you are still smiling and helping us to smile too. Here's to a lovely spring!

Patricia Franz said...

Truly, this west coast girl cannot imagine existence in February's frozen underworld - though she might relish the best excuse for staying in!

Karen Edmisten said...

Linda B., best wishes for your March, too! Hang in there through your snowiest month! (That's sometimes true in Nebraska, too, during a wet winter. The only consolation is that our spring-ish snows melt quickly.)

Carol, yes, the effects of climate change are so disconcerting, to say the least. And the misunderstandings of it in some quarters are frustrating (to say the least), aren't they?

Bridget, clinking right back at you! :D

Linda, I'm happy you get to be Sara this year. ;)

Anon, yes — what would we do if we couldn't laugh?

Denise, yes, and today's the last day of February! Break out the champagne, lol!

Patricia, yes, it IS often an excuse for staying in when we can! :)