From "Bestiary"
My mother sends me a black-and-white
photograph of her and my father, circa
1968, posing with two Indian men.
“Who are those Indian guys?” I ask her
on the phone.
“I don’t know,” she says.
The next obvious question: “Then why
did you send me this photo?” But I don’t
ask it.
One of those strange Indian men is
pointing up toward the sky.
Above them, a bird shaped like a
question mark.
8 comments:
I'll admit, I'm unfamiliar with Sherman Alexie's work (other than Smoke Signals), so after reading this, I had to do some sleuthing. Now I do believe I'll have to read more . . .
Great imagery. I like to idea of sending a photo that can't be explained.
I was just discussing with my family a photo of birds in the sky that made the shape of a smiling face today! A lovely poem about one of the many mysteries all around us.
I love this. There is so much hidden, unsaid, teasing.
The poetry and that sky
....a deep drink of cold water
for my soul:)
thanks beautiful Relyn,
Jennifer
I remember in the past seeing such pictures. How fascinating the read here and remember.
What a beautiful photo and how perfectly it works with that lovely poem.
I love this, a poem about a photo that contains a mysterious story (or rather, a poem about a photo that is a poem). I wonder if the mother wanted her child to think about the possibilities of the photo, what stories it could tell and the poetry of the images... like seeing the bird as a question mark. And no, we don't always have an explanation or clear memory of what happens in our lives, but we try to understand and use poetic license too in giving meaning to it all :)
Thanks for sharing this!
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