Mines is a powerful poem. Wow. Planting an orchard on a battlefield is both bittersweet and stupid, especially if one believes in the idea orchard and denies the buried bombs. It’s akin to the denial of the slave power in American history. The grief that comes from simply seeing the old place and not being able to touch--this is the cost of casually digging in a minefield as too many Americans are doing at the ballot box as we speak. I immediately thought of Chekov’s orchard which was being cut down as the aristocracy was waning, setting the table for Lenin’s Red Terror and Stalin’s purges. It’s incredible how historically tentacular this poem is, such a strong emotional statement. MAGA people are digging in a mine field and expecting Trump to plant an orchard. Good luck with that.
Mines is a powerful poem. Wow. Planting an orchard on a battlefield is both bittersweet and stupid, especially if one believes in the idea orchard and denies the buried bombs. It’s akin to the denial of the slave power in American history. The grief that comes from simply seeing the old place and not being able to touch--this is the cost of casually digging in a minefield as too many Americans are doing at the ballot box as we speak. I immediately thought of Chekov’s orchard which was being cut down as the aristocracy was waning, setting the table for Lenin’s Red Terror and Stalin’s purges. It’s incredible how historically tentacular this poem is, such a strong emotional statement. MAGA people are digging in a mine field and expecting Trump to plant an orchard. Good luck with that.