Hearts Afire – Mini Inquiry Poem
Hearts Afire
Some pursue it the way the waves relentlessly kiss the shores,
Through low tides and high tides,
Eloquently pleased more then ever before.
A small taste of life’s greatest desire,
Their hearts afire.
Some wish to woo instead of being wooed,
A one-sided devotion,
The other being eschewed.
There was no such pleasure,
Life’s grandest craving conveyed into eternal words of expression,
Heartfelt articles,
An undying affection.
Desire creeping into our brains,
Capturing our hearts in vain.
Some will have their heart break as they sing a love song,
An impenetrable soul of philophobia,
How does one push down a feeling so strong?
Are we to pursue our desire?
Should we let our concrete pillars crumble?
Risk our fragile emotions?
All to feel our heart afire?
Rationale:
Hearts Afire is a poem written by Madelaine Wong which explores the theme of love and change in our lives. Wong portrays it as a soul contemplating on chasing affection or not to, bringing up how sometimes it is hard to face feelings, fearing we may face rejection or have our heart broken in the blink of an eye. Her poem captures just how beautiful love could be, t0 be wooed with songs, gifts, the affection preserved in eternity through poetry just as William Shakespeare’s Sonnet 18 had mentioned; So long lives this, and this gives life to thee. Wong also put how sometimes love can be a one sided affection, relationship or end up hurting this one person causing them to put up concrete pillars of protection. She managed to incorporate the idea of some wishing to go after someone instead of waiting to be pursued themselves in the line Some wish to woo instead of being wooed, a line inspired by William Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream. They want to change the way society thinks, pursue their own destiny in their own way. Overall it is a poem that encompasses the hardships and amazing things love can offer. It is hard to challenge society’s narrow minded thinking but Wong is able to give life to the matter in using love as a real life example of challenging society’s views and expectations. Love is blind, it doesn’t care for race, gender nor language and that is the way we should view it. We should not be afraid to love or to be loved. There are times when it is okay to let our defenses fall, to welcome in a new affection with open arms and try from a new beginning.
One Response to Hearts Afire – Mini Inquiry Poem