Just a quick word here on the title of this blog. There is a piece in Openers II entitled simply "A Poem". I am guessing it is probably found in the original Openers, though I am not certain. At any rate, the poem mainly deals, in a syntactically tortured way, with recognizing Christ as Savior and what follows from that recognition. Near the center of the poem is a stanza that begins with the very un-Roky like line (because so straightforward, though blooming fabric is odd), "The purple organdies blooming," followed immediately by the more typical "the forest blissens with song." It is an arresting image, made memorable by the neologism. Unlike much of his work, the sense of the line is instantly and perfectly clear, yet , like much of his work, the language is at once strange and charming. "Strange and charming" would be a good way to define the appeal of much of his writing. As another example from the same poem, consider the second stanza:

The colors after only danger
Christ is no stranger
what place was taken
identity of needed was mistaken.

The first line is very confusing, though the word "colors" will reoccur later in a more explicable context. The question is, are the colors after (in the sense of sequence), only (as in the absence of anything else) danger, or is there an inversion, and should the line then read "the colors only after danger"? Or are the colors after in the sense of pursuit? The line has several readings, depending on how one wishes to define vague terms and grammatical constructs. There is then the second half of the stanza. Is the implication here that the crucifixion was a case of mistaken identity? In light of the rest of the poem, it seems unlikely. It seems more probable that the mistaken identity is that of the poet himself, or anyone else who would question his own worthiness to be saved. There is the reassurance later in the poem that "it is right to be alive," and that you should "know that you belong."

In the penultimate stanza, reference is made to "the different feelings of feelings of no bad bringing needles." This makes the poem seem likely to be about recovery from addiction. Thus the theme of redemption makes perfect sense. The sense of recovery is expressed in terms such as the above "feeling of feelings," as well as in "different colors of colors", "senses of senses" (taste and smell in particular), and "loves of love." This would clearly seem to be a poem that expresses transcendence, an experience of the world made more real through spiritual transformation. That transformation helps the poet see beyond the surface of the world as he has previously experienced it, to see the colors of colors and the senses of senses. It is both intimate and cosmic, eternal and grounded in the moment.