Mr. LeVine,
I greatly admire your modesty and wisdom. You began writing poetry with the intention that it wouldn't last, and in fact, you joke about ever becoming a poet. Thankfully, you did decide to pursue it and shared with the world some terrific stories from your youth, which may not all be true, but the secret behind that will forever stay with you.
I think it's an important subconscious decision not to let death stop you. One of the most relatable things you said in your interview was that you are more afraid of losing someone close to you, such as your wife, than dying yourself. Personally, that, too, it one of my biggest fears. With that being said, the anticipation of death will never stop me. In fact, it has to opposite effect. Ultimately, all I want in life is to experience as much as I can before death, and that includes spending as much time with those who mean most to me.
One of my favorite poems from your reading was You Can Have It, I say 'one of' because they were all terrific. This poem really gets into what it was like for you growing up, including having your twin brother there will you. Being raised in Detroit during the Depression is sure to leave an impression on anybody. Perhaps that why you identify your earlier books as being bitter and angry. My favorite lines of this poem are "We were twenty for such a short time and always in the wrong clothes, crusted with dirt and sweat. I think now we were never twenty." Being the time and place you were in, you must have never got the chance to live like a twenty-year-old today would. This poem also shows how large a role those most important to you play in your life. You recognize that together you are one man, sharing a heart, hands, and a mouth, and that is a powerful statement.
Your poems will continue to fill its readers with all the wild emotions you intended them to have for years to come. Thank you for sharing you stories the best way you knew how.
Warm regards,
Maddie Nicol
It never struck me that he never got to live like a twenty year old because he never had the opportunity too. It makes too much sense on why he says he was never twenty. Thank you for mentioning that because I remember that line, and it confused me during the movie. I too it as he was so focused on the future while he was twenty, that he forgot to live in the moment. However, your explanation makes much more sense than my interpretation, so thank you for that.
ReplyDeleteEven though he never "lived" in his 20's, I feel like it was his favorite time because he met so many people. I felt like he was bored now with all the people around him. The only thing that shocked me was how he said his beginning poems were so angry. They were probably so angry because he was out there working hard and meeting new people who shared hard life stories with him. Now a 20 years old life is much different. The live while your young and carpe deum was not around when he was younger. They had to work to support themselves. I'm glad he found enjoyment though with the people he met, enough to be angry for them and remember them.
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