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Odes, Part 1
Happy May, Seized readers! Many of us will be ending the academic year soon and looking forward to summer’s leisure.
I remember from my primary and secondary school years how exciting the end of the year was for me and my classmates. We anticipated all that summer had to offer—splashing with friends at the pool, July Fourth fireworks, possibly a beach vacation.
The last week of school was always packed with activities such as Field Day. We kids were, at that point, nowhere to be found, mentally, except “working” at play! Our poor teachers, bless them, had to deal with our bouncing-off-the-wall attitudes. We would bring in gifts and place them on our teachers’ desks, tokens of our gratitude that they well deserved.
That spirit of gratitude draws me to the poetic form of the ode.
The Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary defines an ode as 1) “a lyric poem usually marked by exaltation of feeling and style, varying length of line, and complexity of stanza forms,” and 2) “something that shows respect for or celebrates the worth or influence of another : homage.”
While you may be familiar with famous odes such as Keat’s “Ode on a Grecian Urn” and Shelley’s “To a Skylark,” there are more contemporary examples. Modern odes need not be restricted to particular verse forms. The “Ode to Teachers” which follows is written in free verse. Free verse has no formal rhyme scheme or stanza length.
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Ode to Teachers BY PAT MORA I remember/ the first day,/ how I looked down,/ hoping you wouldn't see/ me,/ and when I glanced up,/ I saw your smile/ shining like a soft light/ from deep inside you./ “I'm listening,” you encourage us./ “Come on!/ Join our conversation,/ let us hear your neon certainties,/ thorny doubts, tangled angers,”/ but for weeks I hid inside./ I read and reread your notes/ praising/ my writing,/ and you whispered,/ “We need you/ and your stories/ and questions/ that like a fresh path/ will take us to new vistas.”/ Slowly, your faith grew/ into my courage/ and for you—/ instead of handing you/ a note or apple or flowers—/ I raised my hand./ I carry your smile/ and faith inside like I carry/ my dog's face,/ my sister's laugh,/ creamy melodies,/ the softness of sunrise,/ steady blessings of stars,/ autumn smell of gingerbread,/ the security of a sweater on a chilly day./ Pat Mora, "Ode To Teachers" from Dizzy in Your Eyes. Copyright © 2010 by Pat Mora. Used by permission of Alfred A. Knopf, an imprint of Random House Children’s Books, a division of Penguin Random House LLC. Note: This poem was taken from The Poetry Foundation website.
Sunrise Photo by Diana Ewell Engel. Location: Pawleys Island, SC
The “Soft Light” of Pat Mora’s Teacher
Few influences are stronger on our development than those of our teachers. Teachers help mold us into who we become. In Mora’s heartfelt ode, here are a few things to note:
Notice how she directly addresses her encouraging teacher by using the pronoun “you.” This choice makes her poem intimate. Along the same lines, she includes her teacher’s words, “I’m listening … / let us hear your neon certainties, / thorny doubts, tangled angers” which bring her teacher into the room with us as readers. The descriptiveness in this quote alone! The adjectives of neon, thorny, and tangled show what a marvelous imagination and attentiveness she possessed for her students and Mora’s writing prowess.
The most important words from Mora’s teacher come in the third stanza when she whispers to her, “We need you / and your stories / and questions / that like a fresh path / will take us to new vistas.” Beautiful, tender. Beyond that, what a metaphor—Mora’s stories and questions are a “fresh path” leading to new views or perspectives.
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Notice the transformation which takes place in the fourth stanza. Instead of the typical gifts I alluded to earlier in this post—the presents we give our teachers—Mora shows her “courage,” a bravery which grew from her teacher’s “faith” in her, by raising her hand. A lump formed within my throat and every encouraging teacher in my life came to mind.
Finally, note the list which ends this poem. These are similes, comparisons using the word like. The blessings of her teacher’s “smile” and “faith” live within her like “my dog’s face, / my sister’s laugh, / creamy melodies, / the softness of sunrise, / steady blessings of stars, / autumn smell of gingerbread, / the security of a sweater on a chilly day.” These lines manifest the exalted feelings that characterize an ode.
Photo by Caroline Hernandez on Unsplash
What We Can Learn from Pat Mora’s Ode
* Our poems are more authentic, intimate and direct when we use first person: I, we, and second person: you, your, yours pronouns.
* When writing odes to people in our lives, selecting important words which our subjects spoke bring those teachers, mothers, fathers, siblings, friends alive for us and for our readers. And we’re recreating cherished moments that we relive as we write.
* Transformational moments help build our odes. Our moments can be anchors that provide starting points for writing our poems. These special experiences don’t have to begin our poems, but they help us to see the qualities of our subjects we wish to praise and what we wish to say in our words.
* Figurative language—metaphors and similes—is the critical ingredient in emotionally and intellectually affecting verse. Don’t be afraid to riff/expand your metaphor or simile into a list of similar experiences. Read again Mora’s last stanza as a wonderful example. She compares her teacher’s “smile and faith” to a number of special occurrences that have brought her a tender warmth.
* Again focusing on the last stanza: Notice how Mora’s similes are sensory images that we can see, hear, smell, taste, and feel. Images show instead of tell. When our images use the senses, we make our writing vivid for our readers.
Today’s Book Pick
Pat Mora’s collection, Dizzy in Your Eyes, receives many five-star reviews. These poems of praise and angst include memories of beloved parents, grandparents and teachers. And, for those of us who aspire to write poetry, Mora includes information about the poetic forms she employs in her verse : ) … yay!
This photo of a path leading to mountain vistas is by Lili Popper on Unsplash.
What’s Coming
The college years are a time of excitement and uncertainty as we find new friends and carve our career paths. My creative writing professor became a mentor for me during an uncertain and stressful period in my life. I will share my ode to her in my next Seized post. Until then, enjoy your reading and writing adventures! Share your verse and/or what you’re currently reading in the Comments Section.
We take turns being each other's teachers! I love your posts!
Di, you're an excellent teacher yourself. That's my final "neon certainty" of the day 😊