The Dickinson Factor

The Dickinson Factor

A Poem by jacob erin-cilberto


The Dickinson Factor

 

 

adjusting composure

my posture weakened when i read you

poems of discontent

brief eulogies for our love

once so engaged

the life of us was the life worth living

 

and then, the reading became awkward

the writing had no voice

eyes darting to walls with photos

we hung our love upon them

and now i feel the rope burns

as i dangle in disbelief

 

Emily Dickinson often wrote from the perspective

of the dead,

I love Emily,

I loved you,

 

but now

it might be time to love a specter

since the scepter carrying entity

has visited us

 

Emily can't leave me,

she's already gone,

and soon she can write about me

from her grave

 

after all,

a dead heart

is a lively topic

for some.

 

 

erin-cilberto

7/15/19

© 2019 jacob erin-cilberto


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Featured Review

"now i feel the rope burns as i dangle in disbelief" what a great line! If Emily Dickinson could write from the grave, she WOULD write about you, Jacob. Indeed, a dead heart is the inspiration for so many poems. A little different from you...I like it. Lydi**

Posted 4 Years Ago


1 of 1 people found this review constructive.

jacob erin-cilberto

4 Years Ago

that is such a compliment...although i think she would have better things to do...thank you, Lydi..... read more



Reviews

.....I have no words.....my voice is in my awe!! This is phenomenal! What might really hit it over the park is if the last line was solitary (it would add some eeriness to that last stanza and poem as a whole with that line isolated - but your call). This is otherwise divine! Bravo! Well freaking done!

Posted 4 Years Ago


jacob erin-cilberto

4 Years Ago

thank you for your kind review emipoemi....

and i will consider that suggestion...i d.. read more
emipoemi

4 Years Ago

my pleasure.
J
I really like the feel of this . . . A seeming loveless Emily and your own loss of love sewn together in this piece. Retreating into poetry as a way of dealing with the real world, a poet loves a long dead poet in proxy! The comparison of hearts is dept . . . two hearts dead in their own way cannot really communicate as we'd wish. Let someone else deal with it if they like . . . this poet will deal with it in his own way. Good write, Jacob. thanks
T

Posted 4 Years Ago


jacob erin-cilberto

4 Years Ago

thank you for your kind words, Tom,
j.
kentuck14

4 Years Ago

J,
I was going to say this made me think of a couple of poems I've read . . . "Undressing Emi.. read more
jacob erin-cilberto

4 Years Ago

thank you for the heads up..."Taking off Emily Dicinson's clothes" by Billy Collins...
what a.. read more
Great poem Jacob, yes dead hearts do become legends in their own writes! I own a book of Emily Dickinson’s poetry- great works as are your own works. Same as music the beat goes on!

Posted 4 Years Ago


jacob erin-cilberto

4 Years Ago

for you to put me anywhere near Emily in the same sentence...thanks for that...I have a long long wa.. read more
Well done like this but I’m still yet to read her it’s a must I must do

Posted 4 Years Ago


jacob erin-cilberto

4 Years Ago

oh my, she was best ever, in my opinion...
yes, read her, even just a poem or two on line.read more
Julie McCarthy (juliespenhere)

4 Years Ago

Ok shall go do it now
What an interesting interplay, here. I like that the poem is about three people (in a sense) but we are only acquainted with two: the speaker and Emily. Perhaps this is the point. Can anyone live up to the image/ideal of those we admire but have no chance of being disappointed by?

Emily Dickinson guarded her privacy so closely, yet we read her now hungry for better understanding. Perhaps it is our need to understand how brilliance can seek to hide and be unable to see its own light. I think part of the allure of her is the way she kept herself back. Our curiosity seeks a door in. Of course, she was also just brilliant- an innovator.

I love the way you celebrate her here. And how in the poem she seems to hold a permanent place within the home. It’s an excellent exploration of the poet-mind, in my opinion. Through the avenue of love.

Posted 4 Years Ago


jacob erin-cilberto

4 Years Ago

Thank you for your very kind review, Eilis....yes, she is my favorite...and she was so ahead of her .. read more
A dead heart sure is a lively topic for me. What a great poem, Jacob! I am reading and re-reading again.

Posted 4 Years Ago


jacob erin-cilberto

4 Years Ago

thank you for your kind words, Fairy.
j.
Very clever sir.
Some poets we read make us feel connected when we see they are going through the same things as us. It can be liberating. The power of the pen.

Love that last stanza.

Posted 4 Years Ago


jacob erin-cilberto

4 Years Ago

thank you for your kind words, Dale,
j.
Okay, I shall be as brief as I possibly can...
Whilst I appreciate it would be physically impossible to achieve given individual preferences, subjectivity and perspectives plus the very diverse nature of literature and poetry etc... but, in spite of all that, if I could write a poem half as good as this and for it to be recognized as such by other writers, then I would be a very happy man indeed.... she was rather bril wasn't she jacob... Nice one is an understatement sir ...

Posted 4 Years Ago


Neville

4 Years Ago

that's the one... as I've said before, not the same year tho :)
jacob erin-cilberto

4 Years Ago

ha ha, yes, that would make you 200 years old...
and it would probably have been hard for you.. read more
Neville

4 Years Ago

or anywhere maybe... typical innit :)
ahaha love your closing sir ..after such a somber emotive tribute to Emily ... and who has not placed her in their hero bucket ... few if any i would guess ... the death and dying and never dead .. the printed word eh ... and words spoken .. all so very haunting
E.

Posted 4 Years Ago


jacob erin-cilberto

4 Years Ago

I can imagine that people might think she was a snob, rather than a reclusive, shy individual...and .. read more
Einstein Noodle

4 Years Ago

i agree, jacob ... she's a hero for me too .. love her stuff! .. plain looking .. but a hidden physi.. read more
Lingering longing long after the loss provides buckets of inspiration
Why is sad more inspiring than happy? Or maybe it's just me. I love this poem.

Posted 4 Years Ago


jacob erin-cilberto

4 Years Ago

i find sad much more easier to write than happy...for sure.
thank you, Edie.
j.

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Shelved in 2 Libraries
Added on July 23, 2019
Last Updated on July 23, 2019

Author

jacob erin-cilberto
jacob erin-cilberto

Carbondale, IL



About
Originally from Bronx, NY, I live in Carbondale, Illinois...teach English at a community college and have been writing and publishing poetry since 1970. I am here to read for inspiration from other po.. more..

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