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Here is a third collection
of warm and sensitive poems by Bette Mioduski. They express
the dreams and hopes of seeking something better in life by
those among us who have been sorely afflicted. In "I'll
Be The One," a young man overcoming a stigma usually
imposed by society, dreams of becoming a champion ice skater
despite being outcast by society for being gay. "He could
be anything in the world, with both eyes open, staring down
those who said, 'how dare you.'" The young man's desire
to be the best stands out as he considers, in a stark contemplative
moment, "I dared to be different," he thought, "for
whoever would think as I did......who my bedfellow is might
well be your lover's brother." This poem reflects on
a significant social stigma attached to a person and recognizes
that talents are being unjustly denied. Mioduski continues
to cheer the underdog and covers many areas of life... such
as the "near-deaf" child who wants to be treated
normally, instead of being ignored. In "The Classroom",
she thinks, "I look at these chests (fellow students'
hearing aids), little boxes are there. What? what are they?"
In another part of the poem the poet expresses the girl's
great need to be like everyone else, but those boxy hearing
aids hurt her ears, her heart, her pride.
The poet believes in times of war soldiers need endless cheering.
But such was not the case for those coming home from the war
in Vietnam. In "Mission Of Betrayal" a young soldier
wonders what has happened to all the fanfare for home arrivals.
"The airport on home soil was empty, a sea of lights
burned my eyes. My head will be lowered, but not until I cry."
Famous events, even, can transcend to delicate private moments
such as when a young girl imagines being somewhere else while
the whole world is bent on applause. In "I Want To Be
Like John Glenn," she says, "We can imagine for
a moment/ we are there/ upon that silvery place;/stay here
with me in this room/ for an hour or so,/ it is the only way/
to be on the moon." A trip to the ice, to the moon, or
even to a personal freedom from any burden is worth reading
about. Find secrets here in poems, which lift the spirit to
even higher heights.
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