How can we be sure that our
two hearts beat as one;
that our two planets orbit
around the same sun;
that our footprints travel
in the same direction?
Do we share the same emotion?
And how do we know?
Kim M. Russell, 19th October 2023

Image by Filipp Romanovski on Unsplash
It’s Thursday and at the dVerse Poets Pub we are writing from a collective point of view to meet the bar with Björn, who says he has been thinking about his poetic voice and how he might tune it.
He talks about changing our perspective when writing poetry (or in prose); many of us prefer to write in first person singular or third person singular, or have even tried our hands at writing in second person singular.
Today Björn would like us to find a collective voice and write in first person plural, which is useful for including or excluding the audience, and writing for a cause. He says that the collective can also be used in love poetry where first and second (or third) person perspectives merge.
He has given examples by the American poet George Oppen and John McCrae.
Indeed…this is impossible, maybe we just believe, and that’s just fine.
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Yep, that’s the conclusion I’ve come to.
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This is gorgeously rendered, Kim! I think we just know it in our gut that we share the same emotions when it comes to certain things! ❤️❤️❤️
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Thank you, Sanaa!
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so many assumptions about ‘we’ – I really like the questions you pose
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Thank you, Laura.
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If we share the same journey, maybe we will know.
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True…
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I think of your poem as the quandry of new lovers….are you the one? Are we the two? You’ve written well about the question of real love here.
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Thank you, Lill. I remember feeling like that. The questions are different now. What will happen if you/I go first? being one of them.
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Kim, I think we will never know, but over time we might feel sure enough.
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Faith, Kim, faith. It works well enough for some flocks 🙂
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🙂
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We don’t know for sure, but I suppose we have to believe.
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True…
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Love your poetic conundrum, Kim. “How do we know?” In the end, it’s a matter of trust, a leap of faith, and the bridge getting there is love itself.
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Yes, Dora, trust is the key.
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How to know. Except often one does.
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Sometimes we’re lucky.
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What a great conundrum! When we walk the path together, hand in hand, heart entwined… then we’ll know.
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Thank you, Colleen. It takes a while to trust completely.
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Nicely done Kim. Moving in lock step!
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Thanks Dwight!
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Don’t try too hard to quantify it… (K)
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Good advice, Kerfe.
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Beautiful post
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Thank you, Satyam.
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I feel one can never fully know! Often one just has to enjoy the ‘now’
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That is so true!
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Attraction, love, trust, commitment…a beautiful, if uncertain, journey!
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Thank you, Lynn.
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Existential Kim – existential…
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At age 82, I try to take life as it comes, unfolds. Not easy. War, violence, upheaval, racism, political craziness. All of it takes a toll. Breathing deeply, knowing there is something larger than me / the collective us helps. A great write, Kim.
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Thank you, Helen.
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Yes how do we know? So often we find out brutally that we don’t!
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That is so true!
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The ‘two planets’ line did throw me out of warp a bit though.
But all in the fun of poetry and its images.
Nice one!!
Much💛love
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Thanks Gillena!
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Trust, otherwise deep suspicion consumes methinks, a provocative poem Kim.
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Thanks Paul.
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Pleasure Kim
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