I actually liked a lot of Harjo's poems in her book How We Became Human, but one poem really stuck with me.
If All Events Are Related
If all events are related, then what story does a volcano erupting in
Hawai'i, the birth of a woman's second son near Gallup, and this
shoulderbone of earth made of a mythic monster's anger construct?
Nearby a meteor crashes. Someone invents aerodynamics, makes
wings. The answer is like rushing wind: simple faith.
I often think that certain things happen for a reason, because something else happened somewhere that now causes this thing to happen to me or people I know. Some times I am angry when things don't go the way I want them to, but I try to remember that everything happens in its own time. I sometimes laugh when I am driving down to school and I am late (which is often). Usually I am angry at myself and then I see a cop whose pulled over someone a few miles up the road. It makes me think that I am late for a reason. Had I left my house 10 minutes earlier it probably would have been me pulled over on the road.
Maybe this isn't even what she is trying to say but I had these thoughts go through me when I read this poem. It makes me think of chaos theory -- that if a butterfly flaps its wings in one part of the world, a hurricane/tornado/blizzard (insert any natural disaster) will occur in another part of the world.
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3 comments:
I think you're right about what Harjo is trying to say. No matter what we may think, we are all connected in one way or another. Personally, I think you have to believe everything occurs with some kind of purpose behind it. Otherwise, we're all just specks of dust on a slightly bigger speck of dust, merely being blown about by some kind of random universal wind. With no purpose for anything, how are we supposed do make purposes for ourselves?
I like your analysis of Joy Harjo's poem. It shows the circular theme we have discussed in class many times. I was reflecting on how you said everything happens for a reason, that one event causes another. I live life the same way. However I do have my doubts. For example, one time I was out with some friends. One of my friends had been drinking(not much, still okay to drive) but she was fighting with her boyfriend and wanted to leave. I wanted to leave too, but I had this intuituion that I shouln't get into her car. I asked her to stay a little longer, but she refused and drove away. Fifteen minutes later I recieve a call from her crying, because she had totaled her car and was going to the hospital. Thankfully she only suffered minor injuries. The aftermath of the crash indicated that if she had had a passenger, he/she would have been killed. Everyday I count my lucky stars that I did not get into that car. I can't help but think however, that maybe if I was in the car, my friend would not have been arguing with her boyfriend on the phone, causing her to crash. Then I think about helpless babies who die within hours of being born. What is the reason for this? Or an innocent individual who is murdered? I guess this is the point of Harjo's poem; you have to have faith. Maybe my doubt stems from the idea that society is too focused on the individual instead of the community as American Indian cultures do. Instead of looking at events of just an individual, the events of all as a whole should be evaluated. I don't know if I'm making any sense, but here's sort of an example. Instead of getting a speeding ticket and being mad because individually you are going to have to pay a hefty fine, think of it as good for the community; you have been pulled over for speeding, which could have affected the well-being of someonelse.
cassy,
i'm glad to see that others have shared the analysis of the poem the way i did.
i'm sorry about your friend but doesn't it make you stop and think for a second about our choices? it is a crazy concept to think that only a few moments can impact our lives forever and the lives around us. it a humbling experience.
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