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In Greek mythology, Gaia was the personification of earth, one of the Greek primordial deities. She was the mother of all; the creator and giver of birth to the earth and the universe. “Gaia’s beings,” therefore, are her creations – the subjects about which the author writes. This motif is carried into the poems themselves, as references to Greek mythology are found in at least 14 of them: “The unicorn is/As graceful as Aphrodite/As wise as Medea” (Unicorn); sharks were given “Speed stolen from Nike’s strides” (Sharks); emeralds contain “The depth of Athena/And the fire of Prometheus” (Emerald); summer’s “diadem is sunlight, woven by the hand/of Arachne herself” (Summer). Mentioned also are Venus, Athena, Poseidon, Persephone, the River Styx, and Gaia herself.
The titles of the poems leave no question as to their respective subjects. Examples are Night, Dawn, Spider Web, Apples, Otters, Penguin, Spring, Rain Swollen Clouds. You get the picture. The book contains a total of 57 poems, and they are all very short – from only ten words (Lava, Beaver) to about 21 lines (Perfect Rose).
Many of the poems are simply platforms to present aspects of nature metaphorically. The subject of the poem (which is invariably the title) is mentioned in the first line, as in “(subject) is (metaphor).” Some examples are:
“Sod is chocolate, softened/By the hand of the sun.” (Simply Sod)
“Dawn is a beautiful finger painting.” (Dawn)
“Spring is a maiden in all her glory.” (Spring)
“Moon is a pale woman/Plump and kind.” (Moon)
Some of these metaphors or idioms are trite, such as in Spring: “Hope should spring eternal.” A much overused expression already. The title “Ants Go Marching” brings to mind the song you are probably now singing to yourself. Nothing original there. And in River: “The river keeps to herself/Babbling in a language/Only she herself/Can understand.” How many times have we heard the word “babbling” used to describe a stream or brook? It seems a bit of a cliché. However, I liked the last stanza of this poem: “She is happy with her life/Laughing often/She hardly ever rages.” Clever!
However, some metaphors are quite good and original: Mist is described as “A lace curtain misplaced” (Mist); a spider web is “An ornament/For a lonely pail” (Spider Web); a daffodil is a “Fresh maid wearing/A newly pressed/Dress of sunbeams” (Daffodil); a penguin is described as “Twirling as if/He is dancing/With a mermaid/Only he can see” (Penguin). These poems are very simple, and present nature as a pure, ideal, and sometimes mysterious thing. Some poetry is cryptic and inaccessible, but these are just the opposite. They are easy to read; there are no hidden meanings, no abstruse or ambiguous speech.
Even so, one or two poems I found a bit strange. For example, amber is spoken of as grabbing insects, “never to let go,” but it comes “to the zenith of her beauty” when it “is decorated by human hands,” and “outshines mere human flesh.” (Amber) The language sounds a bit forced and awkward here. Also, in Ode to a Goat, after the goat’s intelligence and beauty are praised, the question is asked, “Is there anything else/So perfectly sculpted by/Gaia’s hands?” I’m not anti-goat, but I wouldn’t place the goat as the pinnacle of all natural beauty.
One of my favorite poems is Dawn:
“Dawn is a beautiful finger painting.
She is some beginning artist’s
Happy mistake,
A masterpiece that cannot be duplicated.”
Nice!
The origin of otters is cleverly described (Otters), and the poet muses about what a speck of dirt would say if it could talk (A Speck of Dirt). I liked both of these. There are poems for each of the four seasons, and I like the continuity between them: “Spring is a maiden in all her glory” (Spring); “Summer is a gentle lady” (Summer); “Fall is a matron” (Fall); “Winter is a queen” (Winter).
These poems are quite simple and straightforward. I didn’t find a lot of depth or insight here, and I wasn’t terribly moved or inspired. But they are pleasant to read. They are one person’s perception of the world around her, and her subsequent expressions of wonder and appreciation at the beauty of the natural world. Percy Shelley said, “Poetry lifts the veil from the hidden beauty of the world, and makes familiar objects be as if they were not familiar.” And Ms. Shaver does find interesting and unique ways to describe simple things that we may take for granted. I certainly can’t be overly critical of a simple collection of poems inspired by nature. Some I liked, and some I didn’t like. But it’s a pleasant read, and you may find yourself stopping to muse once or twice. I rate this book 3 out of 4 stars.
***
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