[1310] I am Very Bothered

Guest poem sent in by Nandini K. Moorthy <nanskrish@>

I am very bothered when I think
of the bad things I have done in my life.
Not least that time in the chemistry lab
when I held a pair of scissors by the blades
and played the handles
in the naked lilac flame of the Bunsen burner;
then called your name, and handed them over.

O the unrivalled stench of branded skin
as you slipped your thumb and middle finger in,
then couldn't shake off the two burning rings. Marked,
the doctor said, for eternity.

Don't believe me, please, if I say
that was just my butterfingered way, at thirteen,
of asking you if you would marry me.

	-- Simon Armitage

I stumbled upon this poem by chance and it sure proved delightful reading (Not
to mention the gush of sweet nostalgia that comes associated with school days).

The innocence of the 13 year old rips through the poem masking the damage
caused by his foolish teenage prank.  Neither the title nor the first two lines
of the opening stanza least prepare the reader for the anecdote the poet
delivers.

What I thought was amazing about the poem, was poets ability to squeeze the
anecdote in fourteen lines (typical of love sonnets), with explicit explanation
of the incident, uncompromising on the humor and at the end, the shameful
acceptance of the act.  I assume the poets reference to the "burning rings" and
"marked for eternity" is part of marriage proposal that he discloses.   The
tinge of shame is also evident in the last stanza

Simon Armitage is a British poet and this poem is from his collection "Book of
Matches" based on his school memories.

[Martin adds]

owwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

That did nasty things to my imagination. *shudder*

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From: Kerri Clarke <kerri@>


I liked the term =B3butterfingered=B2 too, as an old folk remedy advises
spreading butter on burns to speed healing, speaking further to the poet=B9s
desire to heal his loved one=B9s wounds.

Kerri

From: Martin DeMello <martindemello@>

This is Just to Say

I have heated
the scissors
that you grasped
unwitting

a brand
you will probably
bear
forever

Forgive me
I was thirteen
So young
And so butterfingered

martin





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From: "james crollie" <james@>

You may not be aware of the old English country treatment for minor
burns - to put butter on the wound - to which the term 'butterfingered'
can also said to refer.  Of course these days we know that putting
grease or fat on a burn ensures that it carries on burning, thus leaving
a permanent scar.  It can be argued that the act of 'branding' which
indeed is what the narrator in the poem is referring to, ensures that
the thing branded remains the property of the 'brander' for ever,
regardless of to whom the 'item' subsequently 'belongs.'  So, underlying
the 'innocence' of the childish act, and the cruelty of it for which the
supposedly adult narrator still feels no guilt, is the additional layer
of bitterness that marriage kills romance (the burning rings of which
you speak) and the pain of loss coupled with the knowledge that his
first love will always 'belong' to him.

It's actually a very sinister poem filled as it is with an unhealthy
obsession for another human being rather than the pure innocence of
first teenage love.  Should you read the anthology 'Burning Matches' -
so titled for the kids game of burning a match and telling a story in
the length of time it takes for the match to burn completely from one
end to the other, you will find many of Armitage's poems have a similar
sinister undertone.

Enjoy!

Jane

janecrollie@