Vital Signs appears to be Kolodji's final book--at least while she was alive. It chronicles her journey through cancer via a series of haiku. The first haiku opens:
the blush of dawn
through a hospital window
vital signs
The hope and fear infuse the poems as the speaker crawls through visits to the hospital, trying to claw back her life.
The California condor, pictured on the cover, is for her a personal image of a vital sign. It has survived near extinction and bounced back.
sturgeon moon
my pillowcase covered
with fallen hair
Not much is gained by explaining the sturgeon moon, but it is "[t]he [f]ull [m]oon in August... because of the large number of sturgeon fish that were found in the Great Lakes in North America this time of year." [Timeanddate.com]
his old toolbox
no way to fix
all that's broken
Be ready to have your heart broken.
Kolodji's work has won the Dwarf Star and the Touchstone. Her chapbook, Tug of a Black Hole, was runner-up for the Elgin. Born on August 11, 1959, she passed on July 21, 2024. She has left behind several potent poems. A book of selected verse would worth pursuing.
No comments:
Post a Comment