I have come to the realisation that I do not allow myself to be bored enough so that my brain can think of the things it wants to think of recreationally, instead of solely thinking about every-day agendas and to-do lists. So I've decided to use this platform to practice boredom, so to speak...
I wanted to talk about my favourite poem ever, The Two Headed Calf by Laura Gilpin. I first read it almost four years ago and it has stuck to me ever since.
Many people interpret this poem as one about death, and endings, and it is seen as a completely soul-destroying piece of art. It is to me, as well.
However I instead would like to focus on the other themes that are also present in this poem of love, particularly familial or maternal love - something unconditional. Which is such a beautiful and magical thing. We should always strive to focus more on love throughout our lives.
The poem, to me, is also about innocence, the beauty of nature, the confusing reality which is our mortality. It forces me to acknowledge how fleeting life really is, along with everything within it. This includes love, loss, joy, ignorance, safety, danger - everything in existence.
Every feeling you have ever felt, regardless of how powerful or monotonous it is.
The poem focuses on this new creature, born just that very day. The creature is full of innocence, and sweetness, and complete curiosity about this new world around him. He knows absolutely nothing except the warmth and comfort of his mother. Some may wish it were possible to go back to a simpler time like this, especially considering how fast-paced the world is nowadays.
The creature is the eponymous two-headed calf. He is born completely against the odds of survival, with two heads. The narrator knows that his life will be short, that he is a phenomenon who will be taken away from his mother soon enough, by the unfortunate reality of his existence, and will be brought to the museum for all to gaze upon.
However, for this extremely short moment in time, he is alive, safe, and happy. All he can think to do is admire the Earth around him and enjoy his short, ephemeral time he has with his mother. He does not even know how brief this moment will be.
It really paints to us a picture of how short life is, and how crucial it is to celebrate and be merry. That's all this calf is doing, after all.
I also think that it is refreshing seeing the use of an animal rather than a human to make this point. Humans can be so selfish at times and can fail to consider other aspects of nature and our planet, so I think using an animal gives us an entirely new perspective on the topic.
Generally for me this poem highlights the importance of making the most of life, and being delicate about how we live and experience the world. It is also so important to appreciate and make the most of the natural world more than the materialistic aspect of life in the society that we live in and have grown accustomed to.
Life is simply so fragile and delicate and needs to be treated as such. You should always treasure it. It is the one opportunity your soul (in its current state) has been given to experience everything, regardless of what one's faith or belief may be for suggesting what happens post-mortem.
Specifically, I want to highlight the phrase: "this freak of nature" which describes the young calf. It embodies such a careless and unfortunate attitude towards this form of life. To me, it reflects on the sometimes cold and uncaring attitude people have on other life forms that do not necessarily affect them because in today's world, people are just too wrapped up in things, and it leaves no room to care about other things at times.
"Freak of nature" also depicts immense judgement which is something that we all fall victim to - judging people and things negatively (either consciously or sub-consciously), which is a saddening truth.
But for the duration of his life which is due to end by the next morning, the calf is unaware of any judgement people may have of him. He only knows love and warmth, which is what I take away from the poem most.
The beauty and light and gentle naivety in life and how painfully mortal we are. It helps no one to focus on the grief and devastating tones of the poem, and is much more productive (at least, in my opinion) to see it as a spotlight on how beautiful and amazing life can be when you enjoy it for its ephemeral nature, and make the absolute most of it.
I think this poem particularly impacted me because in my life there have naturally been many hardships I have had to face and deal with, and take on the chin. It is undeniably not a smooth sailing ship - life - so that makes it all the more important to focus on the smaller details of life. A bird singing. A leaf crunching. A painting. Anything at all that ignites even a little bit of joy.
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