Classic and Contemporary Poetry: Explained

Yusef Komunyakaa’s “Between Days” is a haunting meditation on grief, denial, and the passage of time, centered around a mother’s enduring hope for the return of her son, long dead in a war. The poem intricately weaves themes of memory, loss, and the psychological coping mechanisms of those left behind, offering a poignant exploration of the intersections between personal tragedy and collective history.

The poem begins with a stark image of anticipation: "Expecting to see him anytime coming up the walkway through blueweed & bloodwort." This opening immediately situates the reader in a liminal space where reality and hope blur. The mother’s expectation, rooted in her refusal to accept her son’s death, creates a tension that permeates the poem. The use of "blueweed & bloodwort" evokes a sense of both natural beauty and violence, foreshadowing the duality of life and death that runs through the narrative.

Her denial of her son’s death is explicit in her statement, “That closed casket was weighed down with stones.” This line not only reflects her disbelief in the finality of death but also critiques the institutions that facilitated and obscured the loss—symbolized by the closed casket, a barrier between her and the truth. The room, preserved as he left it “fourteen years ago,” becomes a shrine to memory and an act of resistance against time’s erasure. Her meticulous care—dusting and polishing with lemon oil—suggests an almost ritualistic devotion to maintaining the illusion of her son’s return.

The objects in the room become extensions of her grief and denial. The uncashed death check from Uncle Sam, marking a passage in the Bible, is a powerful symbol of the intersection between bureaucratic indifference and spiritual solace. It also represents her refusal to accept both the monetary compensation and the reality it acknowledges. By juxtaposing the practical ("uncashed death check") with the sacred ("a passage in the Bible"), Komunyakaa highlights the mother’s struggle to reconcile worldly loss with faith.

The photograph on the dresser, “staring out through the window,” serves as a silent witness to her pain, embodying her son’s absence and her hope for his return. Her reflections shift to a litany of grievances and judgments: “Mistakes. Mistakes.” The repetition underscores her frustration and unresolved anger, directed not only at the military institutions that took her son but also at family dynamics, such as Janet and her “three children by three different men.” These critiques reveal her attempt to find order or assign blame in the chaos of her loss.

Komunyakaa’s imagery intensifies as the poem progresses. The "row of tin soldiers" on the windowsill evokes both childhood innocence and the militaristic forces that claimed her son’s life. The sunset flashing across them “like a blast” mirrors the violence of war, intruding on the domestic space. Similarly, the burial of the Silver Star and flag under winter clothes speaks to her complex relationship with these symbols of honor—both a source of pride and a painful reminder of her son’s sacrifice.

The poem’s closing lines shift from the static tableau of the preserved room to the fleeting beauty of the natural world. The evening?s first fireflies, described as “distant tracers,” connect the domestic and the martial, as even the ephemeral joy of fireflies recalls the deadly realities of war. Her position in the chair, facing the walkway, reinforces her vigil, while the TV dissolving into snow symbolizes the collapse of time and memory. The static of the TV becomes a metaphor for the “days between,” the interminable stretch of waiting and longing that defines her existence.

“Between Days” masterfully captures the psychological toll of war on those left behind, particularly the mothers who endure its aftershocks long after the battles have ended. Komunyakaa’s vivid imagery and poignant narrative voice bring to life the mother’s denial and hope, her anger and tenderness, and her struggle to preserve meaning in the face of loss. The poem is both a critique of the institutions that perpetuate violence and a deeply human portrait of grief’s endurance. Through this intimate lens, Komunyakaa universalizes the experience of mourning, reminding readers of the unseen scars carried by families and communities touched by war.

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