Into the Garden State
I have nothing to offer but
memories about
all the cicada affairs,
and the fireflies
have also grown foreign.
Once back in Kentucky, I cooked
two soups in my sleep.
Did I know then where the
leftovers were going?
Shifting. Out here,
we’re always shifting.
Serving up food for
our Jersey broods.
We can’t take out
what’s gone in, but we can
always add more salt.
8 thoughts on "Into the Garden State"
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“I cooked two soups in my sleep” is just dreamy!
Really strong closing stanza too
Thank you!
Look up “Poem at 30” by Sonia Sanchez– a local poet wrote her version of it in her chapbook. 😀
I tried to follow suit, and instead ended up using my favorite bits in the 2nd and 3rd stanzas. ☺️
Love you!
I read this about one’s writing practice, some days there’s nothing to offer. Love “Shifting.” and where the poem ends up.
Oh I love this interpretation!
It’s totally there, especially in the first stanza.😊
Thank you for saying that. I feel so cool and more relatable! 😎
I love the images and choices here, and this poem says to me about absence. “and the fireflies/have also grown foreign” has a great cadence
Thanks!
Had a Sonia Sanchez poem to inspire almost half of it. 🍀
That bit was me (after a few drafts)!
I haven’t been jealous of y’all and your cicada and fireflies. 💙Pfft.
Homesick? Never! 🫣
I love where you went with this poem and how you got there! The reminder that “we can always add more salt” is the perfect ending to this delightful poem!
Thank you! “Poem at 30” by Sonia Sanchez put its fingerprints on this poem.📚
It’s hard to resist a little sprinkle of conventional wisdom– glad you like how that ended it. 💗