The Slowdown: Poetry & Reflection Daily – Episode 1291: "Our Bodies" by Michael Bazzett

Release Date: February 10, 2025

Episode Overview

In Episode 1291 of The Slowdown: Poetry & Reflection Daily, hosted by American Public Media, poet Major Jackson delves into the poignant poem "Our Bodies" by Michael Bazzett. This episode artfully intertwines personal reminiscences with deep poetic analysis, offering listeners a contemplative journey through themes of childhood, embodiment, and the ephemeral nature of life.

Personal Reflections by Maggie Smith

The episode opens with Maggie Smith sharing heartfelt memories from her childhood, setting a nostalgic tone that resonates throughout the episode.

• Childhood Adventures (01:21 - 02:02):

  Maggie recounts moving to a house with a creek, where she and her sisters spent countless hours exploring nature. She vividly describes activities like "wading in the water, catching minnows and crawdads, and building rock bridges" (01:36). These experiences highlight the innocence and boundless imagination of childhood, unbounded by modern distractions.

• Free Range Childhood (02:02 - 02:55):

  Reflecting on a "pre-Internet, pre-cell phone" upbringing, Maggie emphasizes the value of unstructured play. She states, "Free time is an incomparable gift" (02:25), underscoring the importance of autonomy and resourcefulness in child development. Her narrative serves as a backdrop for the episode's exploration of how our physical selves anchor our expansive inner lives.

• Raising Free Range Children (02:55 - 03:29):

  Transitioning to the present, Maggie discusses her approach to parenting, striving to provide her children with similar freedoms. She nostalgically mentions, "Watching them all plop down on the grass out front, laughing and eating popsicles together, it's like 1983 in my childhood" (03:13), drawing a parallel between her past and her children's present experiences. This connection between generations sets the stage for the episode's thematic exploration of embodiment.

Exploring "Our Bodies" by Michael Bazzett

The core of the episode centers on Michael Bazzett's poem "Our Bodies," meticulously unpacked by Maggie Smith and Major Jackson.

• Introduction to the Poem (03:29 - 03:46):

  Maggie reflects on the poem's relevance to her personal experiences, noting, "There's something about being embodied, of being contained," (03:51). This observation introduces the central theme of the poem: the juxtaposition between the vastness of human experience and the limitations of our physical forms.

• Recitation and Analysis of the Poem (03:46 - 05:40):

  Maggie and Major Jackson delve into the poem's vivid imagery and profound contemplations:

  "We used to ditch them after school, dropping them in the lush grass that grew where the trestle bridge crossed the creek, and everything smelled of fish and tarred timber. Then we sank to the silty bottom of the stream and stared up through the rusty water for hours without worrying about breathing..." (04:00)

  This excerpt illustrates the children's imaginative play, symbolizing a temporary escape from the confines of their bodies into a realm of limitless possibility.

  Further, the poem poignantly captures moments of realization about mortality and the physical self:

  "Afterward, we crept back to where our bodies lay tangled in the grass, still as two steamed fish on a plate, and we peered into our empty eyes, then climbed back into our skins and felt heavy at first and too thick, and sometimes you would even cry a little on the way home, and when I'd try to comfort you, you'd say, no, it's okay. Sometimes it just hits me this way, living inside a body." (04:50)

  This passage eloquently conveys the dissonance between the expansive nature of emotions and memories versus the restrictive reality of our physical existence.

Themes and Insights

Throughout the episode, several profound themes emerge:

• Embodiment vs. Experience:

  The poem juxtaposes the boundless nature of human emotions and memories with the tangible limitations of our physical selves. Maggie remarks, "Our lives feel so enormous, so timeless, so uncontainable, so brimming with memory and feeling, and yet here we are, in these bodies that will absolutely expire." (03:51) This tension underscores the human condition's complexity, highlighting the struggle to reconcile our inner vastness with our finite bodies.

• Nostalgia and Memory:

  Maggie's personal anecdotes serve as a bridge to the poem's exploration of memory. The shared experiences between her childhood and her children's present lives evoke a sense of continuity and the enduring impact of early experiences on our understanding of self and embodiment.

• Mortality and Acceptance:

  The poem's reflection on the impermanence of the body invites listeners to contemplate mortality. The nonchalant response, "no, it's okay" (04:50), suggests a stoic acceptance of our physical limitations, encouraging a mindful appreciation of the present moment.

Conclusion

Episode 1291 of The Slowdown: Poetry & Reflection Daily masterfully intertwines personal narrative with poetic exploration, offering a rich and engaging reflection on what it means to inhabit a body. Through Maggie Smith's evocative storytelling and Major Jackson's insightful analysis, listeners are invited to contemplate the delicate balance between our expansive inner lives and the tangible realities of our physical selves. Michael Bazzett's "Our Bodies" serves as a poignant focal point for this meditation, encouraging a deeper understanding of embodiment, memory, and the human experience.

Notable Quotes:

• Maggie Smith on free time: "Free time is an incomparable gift." (02:25)

• Reflection on embodiment: "Our lives feel so enormous, so timeless, so uncontainable, so brimming with memory and feeling, and yet here we are, in these bodies that will absolutely expire." (03:51)

• Poem excerpt on childhood play:

  "We used to ditch them after school, dropping them in the lush grass that grew where the trestle bridge crossed the creek..." (04:00)

• Contemplation on living inside a body: "Sometimes it just hits me this way, living inside a body." (04:50)

The Slowdown is a production of American Public Media in partnership with the Poetry Foundation and supported in part by the National Endowment for the Arts. To receive daily poems, visit slowdownshow.org and subscribe to their newsletter or follow them on Instagram at @SlowdownShow.