"One Year ago—jots what? (296)" by Emily Dickinson

Facebook
Twitter
Instagram
Poem-a-Day is reader-supported. Your gift today will help the Academy of American Poets continue to publish the work of 260 poets each year, and share this series with 320,000 readers every day.
December 31, 2023 

One Year ago—jots what? (296)

Emily Dickinson

One Year ago—jots what?
God—spell the word! I—can’t—
Was’t Grace? Not that—
Was’t Glory? That—will do—
Spell slower—Glory—

Such Anniversary shall be—
Sometimes—not often—in Eternity—
When farther Parted, than the Common Woe—
Look—feed upon each other’s faces—so—
In doubtful meal, if it be possible
Their Banquet’s true—

I tasted—careless—then—
I did not know the Wine
Came once a World—Did you?
Oh, had you told me so—
This Thirst would blister—easier—now—
You said it hurt you—most—
Mine—was an Acorn’s Breast—
And could not know how fondness grew
In Shaggier Vest—
Perhaps—I couldn’t—
But, had you looked in—
A Giant—eye to eye with you, had been—
No Acorn—then—

So—Twelve months ago—
We breathed—
Then dropped the Air—
Which bore it best?
Was this—the patientest—
Because it was a Child, you know—
And could not value—Air?

If to be “Elder”—mean most pain—
I’m old enough, today, I’m certain—then—
As old as thee—how soon?
One—Birthday more—or Ten?
Let me—choose!
Ah, Sir, None!

This poem is in the public domain. Published in Poem-a-Day on December 31, 2023, by the Academy of American Poets. 

Subscribe to the Poem-a-Day Podcast 

  

“One Year ago—jots what?” was first published in Bolts of Melody: New Poems of Emily Dickinson (Harper & Brothers, 1945). In The Art of Emily Dickinson’s Early Poetry (Harvard University Press, 2000), David T. Porter, professor emeritus of English at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, writes, “In the poem ‘One Year ago—jots what?’ the speaker is trying to recapture (through the imagination) and to define an earlier time when parting from a lover was comparable to the pain of death. [. . .] In a manner similar to [John] Donne’s and [Robert] Browning’s (the abruptness of the rhythm, the use of colloquial language, the implication that a listener is present), Emily Dickinson establishes a vivid sense of presence and of personality. Faithful to the experience of hearing a person speak out of great emotion, the poet here implies that the emotional pressure defies any sort of auditory or rhythmical regularity. In the final stanza, true to the emotional intensity, the end-sounds shift nervously, repel, effect an exact rhyme once (then-Ten), and terminate in the sound None, for which there has been no precise auditory preparation, and for the meaning of which, indeed, there has been only a subtly indicative tendency in the speaker’s increasing insight into her condition [. . .].”
Emily Dickinson was born on December 10, 1830, in Amherst, Massachusetts. While she was extremely prolific as a poet and regularly enclosed poems in letters to friends, she was not publicly recognized during her lifetime. She died on May 15, 1886.

The Poems of Emily Dickinson
(Belknap Press, 2005)


 

“Her Initials” by Thomas Hardy
read more
“Yesterday and To-morrow” by Paul Laurence Dunbar
read more

Thanks to Claudia Rankine, author of Just Us: An American Conversation (Graywolf Press, 2021), who curated Poem-a-Day for this month’s weekdays. Read or listen to a Q&A about Rankine’s curatorial approach and find out more about our guest editors for the year.
“Poem-a-Day is brilliant because it makes space in the everyday racket for something as meaningful as a poem.” —Tracy K. Smith

If this series is meaningful to you, join the community of Poem-a-Day supporters by making a gift today. Now serving more than 320,000 daily subscribers, this publication is only possible thanks to the contributions of readers like you.
 
Copyright © 2023 The Academy of American Poets, All rights reserved.
You are receiving this email because you opted in via our website.



Our mailing address is:
The Academy of American Poets
75 Maiden Lane
STE #901
New York, NY 10038

Add us to your address book


View this email in your browser

Want to change how you receive these emails?
You can update your preferences or unsubscribe from all Academy messages.

For any other questions, please visit the Poem-a-Day FAQ page.

Older messages

Before we turn the page on 2023…. Poets.org needs you!

Saturday, December 30, 2023

Support our free, life-giving programs and publications in 2024 by making a gift before the year ends Reader, In uncertain times like these, I believe in poetry's vital role, inviting us to examine

Before we turn the page on 2023…. Poets.org needs you!

Saturday, December 30, 2023

Support our free, life-giving programs and publications in 2024 by making a gift before the year ends Reader, In uncertain times like these, I believe in poetry's vital role, inviting us to examine

"Winter Song" by Wilfred Owen

Saturday, December 30, 2023

The browns, the olives, and the yellows died, Facebook Twitter Instagram Poem-a-Day is reader-supported. Your gift today will help the Academy of American Poets continue to publish the work of 260

We find each other—through poetry

Friday, December 29, 2023

Poetry connects us—to ourselves and to each other. Please consider supporting our programs and publications with a special year-end gift Dear Reader, Whether you turn to poetry seeking insight, comfort

Every day, we find each other—through poetry

Friday, December 29, 2023

Poem-a-Day connects us—to ourselves and to each other. Please consider supporting the series with a special year-end gift Dear Reader, There's nothing like Poem-a-Day, which celebrates what Academy

You Might Also Like

Sydney Sweeney's New 'Dark Suede Blonde' Is Winter's Hottest Shade

Wednesday, November 27, 2024

So rich and luxurious. The Zoe Report Beauty The Zoe Report 11.26.2024 (Beauty) Sydney Sweeney's New 'Dark Suede Blonde' Is Winter's Hottest Shade (Celebrity) Sydney Sweeney's New

7 Days Till GivingTuesday

Tuesday, November 26, 2024

Join the GivingTuesday movement, support Our Human Family, and reimagine a world build upon shared humanity and generosity. OHF WEEKLY 7 Days Till GivingTuesday Join the GivingTuesday movement, support

5 Hacks to Speed up Chrome

Tuesday, November 26, 2024

The Best Black Friday Tech Deals at Amazon, Best Buy, and More. Optimize between performance, efficiency, and privacy. Not displaying correctly? View this newsletter online. TODAY'S FEATURED STORY

Zendaya Went Braless & Sydney Sweeney Wore A Sheer LBD On The Same Mag Cover

Tuesday, November 26, 2024

Plus, white chrome nail ideas, your daily horoscope, and more. Nov. 26, 2024 Bustle Daily An illustration showing a housewife preparing a cake while an explosion occurs outside her window. LIFE Are

What Should a 30-Something Look Like?

Tuesday, November 26, 2024

Today in style, self, culture, and power. The Cut November 26, 2024 HEALTH What Should a 30-Something Look Like? This year, we lost the plot on just how well millennials are aging. Photo-Illustration:

New from Tim — "Q&A with Tim — What’s Next for Me, Asking Better Questions, Career Reinvention in The Age of AI, Practices for Joy, Getting Unstuck, and More"

Tuesday, November 26, 2024

The latest from author and investor Tim Ferriss ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏

Finneas’ New Groove

Tuesday, November 26, 2024

With a bubbling acting career and a live-wire new solo album, Finneas is loving being in the mix. • Nov. 26, 2024 Up Next Your complete guide to industry-shaping entertainment news, exclusive

Walmart's Black Friday Sale Is LIVE 🚨

Tuesday, November 26, 2024

Shop the best deals of the season now. $424 (you save $75.99) ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏

Poem for The Blind Girl by Eleanor Lindsay

Tuesday, November 26, 2024

An ekphrastic poem after John Everett Millais ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏

🌎 Where Mindfulness Meets Climate Action

Tuesday, November 26, 2024

Thanksgiving Journals to Honor the Earth and Its Stewards ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏