Lost Brother~ Stanley Moss

After reading this poem, I am willing to bet that the speaker is definitely an environmentalist. the poem seems to be written from the viewpoint of a tree, and is about said trees' brother. The speaker is proud of his brother, and the poem reads almost like a eulogy for the fallen tree. The speaker mentions the cause of death, followed by the age at which the tree died. The speaker goes on to talk about his relationship with the tree and how he felt when he learned it had been cut down. The middle of the poem is about the fallen tree's life.  It talks of how and where he lived, the trees that were his neighbors, and the animals that came  and went with the seasons. The last section differs from the traditional eulogy, speaking about the speaker, as opposed to the fallen tree. The speaker tells us that he will live as long as his brother, for his mothers sake, and that he will live a life that is full of joy and suffering. The last line is foreshadowing to his own death, as he says, "Sooner or later, some bag of wind will cut me down." This a reference to how the fate of his brother is the same fate that awaits him, being cut down by a human. I find it very amusing that humans are referred to as bags of wind,  hinting that the speaker believes that humans have no intelligence, that we have no mind and no humanity, because of our tree-cutting habits.

A Grey Haze Over The Rice Fields~ Jayanta Mahapatra

The poem, A Grey Haze Over The Rice Fields by Jayanta Mahapatra is broken into two stanzas. These two stanzas represent the past and the present. The first stanza represents both. The first half of the stanza seems to predominately be about the past. It speaks of things only in observation, as one might do every morning to something that is familiar, to make sure nothing has changed during the night. The second half of the first stanza is more reminiscent of the past. It speaks of kisses from a dead grandmother, of a vain mother of the speakers' childhood. The second stanza is more about the present, with hints at the future towards the end. The first word of the second stanza is "Today" which automatically clues the audience in to what time the speaker is in. It also talks about a shadow, a shadow that is only restrained by the present, though it still carries the speaker's childhood within its depths. It is not burdened by the past, as the speaker seems to be, evidenced by the speaker comparing the shadow to squirrels in mango trees, showing the the shadow is light and quiet, despite the past it carries.

Mr Fear ~ Lawrence Raab

Lawrence Raab's poem "Mr Fear" is a poem personifying fear, more specifically, nightmares. The poem is comprised of six four-line stanzas, each adding a slightly different part of Mr. Fear. The first stanza is a brief description of Mr. Fear. The author equates him with a shadow that has God-like orders, deciding where and when and what tragedy will strike. The second stanza we actually meet Mr. Fear, though we have no desire to. The speaker seems to make an analogy between Fear and Santa Claus, only instead of gifts, he brings nightmares. The third stanza further humanizes Fear by wondering how Mr. Fear feels about his job, if he is happy or sad to cause such despair. The fourth stanza is a plea to Mr. Fear from the speaker. He begs to only have a small nightmare, so small, in fact, that it falls through the whole in the speakers pocket. The speaker continues to plead in the fifth stanza, though this time is is for two things that brings him joy and safety. The last stanza is full of regret, and longing. The speaker only wants to return to a time before Mr. Fear, but he can't, no one can go back in time, as much as we all wish we could.

Wallflowers~ Donna Vorreyer

I actually really enjoyed this poem, which is an accomplishment for me because I hate poetry. I detest poetry. I gladly look forward to the day where I never have to look at it again. I don't like prose, which is a lot like poetry if you think about it. I don't even like English class (and all variences thereof) but, I digress.
Anyway, I really enjoyed the poem. It is written from the point of view of an author, trying to use uncommon words. He or she equates them with lovers, orphans, shy teenagers, and immigrants. At each turn the speaker expresses their desire to set the words that were seldom (if ever) used, free.
I think one of the reasons I love it is because of the overall tones of desperation and compassion that run throughout the poem. The speaker wants to use theese words, personifing them in such a way that allows them to, for a moment, speak the feeling of betrayel and abandonment for becoming obsolete. The author allows the words to be seperated from the rejection that every kid who is picked last for a team has felt.
So that's part of my rant about this poem, I highly recommend you reading it.