In my third year of high school, my English class studied Langston Hughes’ poem “Suicide’s Note.” It was one of my favorite poems to discuss. I couldn’t get it out of my mind; even now, I can’t. It is short. But the sound and the imagery–well, I love it.
Perhaps, you’ll see where I’m coming from:
Suicide’s Note
The calm,
Cool face of the river
Asked me for a kiss–Langston Huges
Close your eyes. Say the poem out loud. What do you see?
I see the wait and feel the soft breaths come in and out of my lungs. From above, I stare into the water–cold in so many, but welcoming. The calm
Then, I let go. The air becomes a funnel I fall into. I can hear its wind rush by my hears. Cool face There is the water, smiling up at me.
I touch it. of the river
It embraces me; there’s barely a splash. Asked me
The water feels beautiful. for a kiss
I love this poem. When you combine the imagery to the sounds ( the k in “calm, cool face” and the s in “asked for a kiss”), it’s, well, what do you think?
