What If?



                                What If?

Wait…
                                   Let’s examine this
                                   wearing new eyes
What if
                                   Death isn’t the bad guy.
                                   Life is the hollow-eyed
                                   kidnapper who stole us
                                   away from the garden city of
                                   light & love floating, as the  
                                   clouds.
                                   Death is the river that leads
                                   back home    
                                   ?                              
Could it be
                                   God didn’t create man but
                                   man, gifted with imagination,
                                   created God, like the sons of
                                   baal, for mercenary motivations
                                   ?
It could be…
                                   that dying is living & vice-versa
                                   —maybe death is the birth of
                                   dawn ( seeds die before living).
                                   that death is a frozen lake,
                                   solid, yet ephemeral like
                                   mother’s last mien—
                                   eyes shut, devoid of expression,
                                   yet peaceful & comforting.
                                   that mum is playing in a garden
                                   now. that mother’s final
                                   portrait is no sad departure.

What if
                                   This is the tale of a little boy
                                   whose grief-consumed heart
                                   knocks mad/ the wishes of a
                                   boy whose little hands are too
                                   weak to exhume the bones of
                                   his beloved; too weak to shake
                                   the foundation of the world
 
Verdict:
                                   Little boy, dry your tears, cease
                                   praying for pigs to fly.
                                   Little boy, dance with grief to
                                   the dirge of Mother’s departure
                                 
                                   Death is death, Life is life
                                   Grief is the ache                    
                                   that’ll never heal

About this poem

This is a poem that, at the beginning, questions certain traditional perspectives to human experiences and beliefs; and later submits to what is ( and a wound that'll never heal)

Font size:
Collection  PDF     
 

Written on July 24, 2003

Submitted by johnt.08173 on July 24, 2022

Modified on March 05, 2023

1:11 min read
0

Quick analysis:

Scheme xxxAbxxcdxxx exfcx edcghxxfgfxi Axxdjchx xxbji xhx
Closest metre Iambic trimeter
Characters 2,717
Words 239
Stanzas 4
Stanza Lengths 31, 8, 5, 3

John Talake

John Talake is a budding poet from Lagos, Nigeria with a passion for reading and writing. John Talake hopes to be a resounding name in the world of Literature. This is his first attempt at public poetry contest. more…

All John Talake poems | John Talake Books

1 fan

Discuss the poem What If? with the community...

0 Comments

    Translation

    Find a translation for this poem in other languages:

    Select another language:

    • - Select -
    • 简体中文 (Chinese - Simplified)
    • 繁體中文 (Chinese - Traditional)
    • Español (Spanish)
    • Esperanto (Esperanto)
    • 日本語 (Japanese)
    • Português (Portuguese)
    • Deutsch (German)
    • العربية (Arabic)
    • Français (French)
    • Русский (Russian)
    • ಕನ್ನಡ (Kannada)
    • 한국어 (Korean)
    • עברית (Hebrew)
    • Gaeilge (Irish)
    • Українська (Ukrainian)
    • اردو (Urdu)
    • Magyar (Hungarian)
    • मानक हिन्दी (Hindi)
    • Indonesia (Indonesian)
    • Italiano (Italian)
    • தமிழ் (Tamil)
    • Türkçe (Turkish)
    • తెలుగు (Telugu)
    • ภาษาไทย (Thai)
    • Tiếng Việt (Vietnamese)
    • Čeština (Czech)
    • Polski (Polish)
    • Bahasa Indonesia (Indonesian)
    • Românește (Romanian)
    • Nederlands (Dutch)
    • Ελληνικά (Greek)
    • Latinum (Latin)
    • Svenska (Swedish)
    • Dansk (Danish)
    • Suomi (Finnish)
    • فارسی (Persian)
    • ייִדיש (Yiddish)
    • հայերեն (Armenian)
    • Norsk (Norwegian)
    • English (English)

    Citation

    Use the citation below to add this poem to your bibliography:

    Style:MLAChicagoAPA

    "What If?" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 18 Apr. 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem/133971/what-if?>.

    Become a member!

    Join our community of poets and poetry lovers to share your work and offer feedback and encouragement to writers all over the world!

    April 2024

    Poetry Contest

    Join our monthly contest for an opportunity to win cash prizes and attain global acclaim for your talent.
    12
    days
    1
    hour
    15
    minutes

    Special Program

    Earn Rewards!

    Unlock exciting rewards such as a free mug and free contest pass by commenting on fellow members' poems today!

    Browse Poetry.com

    Quiz

    Are you a poetry master?

    »
    What is the term for the continuation of a sentence without a pause beyond the end of a line, couplet, or stanza.
    A Enjambment
    B Line break
    C A turn
    D Dithyramb