Cocoon by Hedy Tripp is a poem of lament, similar to a prayer in its expression of sorrow, springs from a hope for a future healing when today’s loss turns into “love and peace.” If you wonder what makes a poem different from an individual’s memory of an event, notice this poet’s use of repetition and the poem’s emotional sequence from love to loss to restoration. Combined, these devices allow a reader to experience the consoling back and forth momentum of a rocking cradle.
The time you invest in reading a poem is important to a poet, but more than that, it is important to our communities. To listen to a poem with the ear of your heart creates space for radical empathy to dwell among us. Thank you for paying attention to Minnesota poets and their poems.