Living in the Moment

"Now" by Christopher Gilbert was a very unique poem. Unlike many other poems in the anthology, it had a very happy and light mood to it. The poem begins on "the first day of summer", describing seemingly personal experiences such as the orange sky, a street party, inspiring a general sense of celebration. While reading such vivid imagery, I felt like I could connect to the narrator's feelings, even though we didn't share the same experiences. In the next stanza, the scene shifts to the winter, as the narrator reminisces about an experience looking into a store window. The author's description of his surroundings contrasts white flakes and darkened windows, giving a bleak but beautiful outlook on winter. Previous to this poem, I never really thought of winter as beautiful, just cold and unforgiving. The narrator points out that "everything is perfect" which is a productive and happy outlook on winter. The next stanza could be either fall or spring, as the two seasons are pretty similar. The narrator describes the motion of a person carrying a shopping bag, which seemed out of place from the rest of the poem. I think that the narrator was using this specific part of the poem to indicate the shifting of the seasons, which helps move the poem along. The last stanza was what tied the whole poem together for me, as we explore the narrator's interactions with a new character. The narrator shares an orange "bigger than my hand can hold" with the new character. In the same way, the narrator shares his experiences with us as readers. It is easy for people to overlook the beauty of nature, and focus on the negative. However, this poem acts as a reminder that we can only control what we do in the moment, and how we should focus on the beauty of the things around us.