Ode to Self: A Poem From Lucille Clifton
The first line from Clifton’s poem, “Won’t You Celebrate With Me?”
No one tells you this—but living is revolutionary. Every emotion is a revolt to live fully and without apologies. This poem is a beautiful ode to the self, specifically feeling and expressing Black joy.
I love the enjambments in this poem. Enjambments is just a fancy term for line endings in poems. They’re random, unrhymed, and mostly without punctuation in “Won’t You Celebrate With Me.” Line endings often focus and linger on one word before jumping into the next thoughtful sentence.
Here is the whole poem with the original line endings:
won’t you celebrate with me
what i have shaped into
a kind of life? i had no model.
born in babylon
both nonwhite and woman
what did i see to be except myself?
i made it up
here on this bridge between
starshine and clay,
my one hand holding tight
my other hand; come celebrate
with me that everyday
something has tried to kill me
and has failed.
Sometimes, line endings emphasize a word because, when spoken, they create a natural power. Lucille directs our attention to feeling an emotion with the speaker in the first ending; the second one emphasizes a transition while the third is a hard stop on the word “model.” You feel the query harder; you desire to be in company with Lucille because joy, like any other emotion, is better when shared.
I’ve been having a hard time being in the company of others. My depression is deep this month. But this poem reminds me that I am stronger than this moment allows me to see. The last few lines make me want to close my eyes and feel each last word independently; “celebrate,” “everyday,” “kill me” and “failed” are all intimidating word choices by themselves… but together, they create an emotional tidal wave of strength.
It suggests that you can’t kill the speaker. Because the speaker is more than what has harmed her.
I imagine a lot of Americans are struggling right now. I know I am. So this poem reminds me that it’s okay to feel a brief happiness. A short moment of light. Because it’s in those times of loneliness where we find ourselves. Where we can learn to show up for others.
Where we can celebrate out of love.
This month, I’ll be focusing on love poems which may look different due to cultural factors. Stay tuned for a hot minute (or two). Thank you for reading. Choose love and peace y que te cuides 🤍
