Tuesday, 28 April 2020

Living Space by Imtiaz Dharker

The poem for today is Living Space. This is the most optimistic poem in our anthology and is one of my favourites.

 This is one of those poems that looks relatively simple, but has so many layers of meaning that make it fascinating to read and to study.

Before you look at my video, watch this interview with Imtiaz Dharker - she is really interesting and quite inspirational. Imtiaz Dharker Interview


Living Space
There are just not enough
straight lines. That
is the problem.
Nothing is flat
or parallel. Beams
balance crookedly on supports
thrust off the vertical.
Nails clutch at open seams.
The whole structure leans dangerously
towards the miraculous.
Into this rough frame,
someone has squeezed
a living space
and even dared to place
these eggs in a wire basket,
fragile curves of white
hung out over the dark edge
of a slanted universe,
gathering the light
into themselves,
as if they were
the bright, thin walls of faith.
By Imtiaz Dharker


Now you can watch my short video here:Living Space