My Life Was the Size of My Life by Jane Hirshfield
My Life Was the Size of My Life
Jane HirshfieldMy life was the size of my life.
Its rooms were room-sized,
its soul was the size of a soul.
In its background, mitochondria hummed,
above it sun, clouds, snow,
the transit of stars and planets.
It rode elevators, bullet trains,
various airplanes, a donkey.
It wore socks, shirts, its own ears and nose.
It ate, it slept, it opened
and closed its hands, its windows.
Others, I know, had lives larger.
Others, I know, had lives shorter.
The depth of lives, too, is different.
There were times my life and I made jokes together.
There were times we made bread.
Once, I grew moody and distant.
I told my life I would like some time,
I would like to try seeing others.
In a week, my empty suitcase and I returned.
I was hungry, then, and my life,
my life, too, was hungry, we could not keep
our hands off our clothes on
our tongues from
KEEP READING
SHARED WITH GRATITUDE
This poem appeared in The Beauty by Jane Hirshfield, published by Knopf, 2017. (Available on: Amazon • Bookshop)
ABOUT JANE HIRSHFIELD
Jane Hirshfield was born in New York City on February 24, 1953. A poet, translator, essayist, and editor. Hirshfield’s books of poetry include The Asking: New & Selected Poems (Alfred A. Knopf); Ledger (Alfred A. Knopf); The Beauty: Poems (Alfred A. Knopf, 2015) and Given Sugar, Given Salt (HarperCollins, 2001). Hirshfield is also the author of Ten Windows: How Great Poems Transform the World (Alfred A. Knopf); Nine Gates: Entering the Mind of Poetry (HarperCollins); and an e-book… (more)
Read more poems by Jane Hirshfield • Find books by this poet on Amazon • Bookshop • Follow on Facebook • Or view my library
ENDNOTES
- Explore other works in pursuit of: time • living • being human • Or browse the index
- If this work resonates with you, please consider supporting the archive. Thank you for reading.
