I'm good
I'm good
I'm good
My heart beats louder than the coffee machine
as I continue to stare off into the nothingness before me
Tears threaten to fall as I remember who I am
Who I was
I'm good
I'm good
I'm good, I mutter
shaking as the memories all come rushing back
Posted May 1, 2022, 2:55 AM UTC
I like this for a reason, it encapsulates the psychological effect of the fight or flight response nicely. An event happened that causes the autonomic nervous system to respond, a stressor, so the heart beats faster digestion shuts down , but your a human not a zebra running away from a lion with your guts dragging in the dirt so you talk yourself down as a coping mechanism "I'm good" . The fear response is all about the amygdala which is part of limbic system that works with the hippocampus to make fear memories by releasing glucocorticoids together with the hypothalamus and pituitary, I believe.
The regulation part, I'm good , the talking yourself down kind of plays into the stressor being psychosocial in nature. Psychosocial stressor can be from displacement aggression that is someone being aggressive to the poet to relieve their own stress. It commonly distills to the lowest person on the totem pole who bears the weight of social stress.
I thought this poem intuited the body very well and I'd like to see more embodiment poetry from you in the future. I honestly wouldn't change a thing about this poem.
Thank you so much, I really appreciate the detailed response. I honestly struggling a bit creatively right now but I'll try to write more of this stuff.
When I read this poem I get that the Speaker is nervous, anxious, and talking swiftly. I imagine a untidy looking man with beady red eyes and stubble beard. High on coffee and probably cocaine too. I absolutely love when poems paint such a vivid picture in my mind.
I like how vivid your imagination is. Thanks for your comment.
Thank you for painting such vivid pictures in my imagination
Anytime, friend. Do you want an exclusive look at a new poem I'm writing? I could use the opinion of someone with a vivid imagination.
Sure I’d love too
I don’t know how to critique or give feedback really. But this resonated with me. I felt the coffee machine thrum, I felt your heartbeat, and I understand that feeling of forcing yourself to be ok and get through it all. Beautiful
It's okay you'll learn how to critique with time. This is good positive feedback though. I'm glad that it resonated with you. Thank you for your comment.
this poem is very relatable honestly, i've had moments like this before and it reminds me of a very specific moment where I was at work trying to call myself down before I had a panic attack. "I'm good" , attempting to grab yourself out of that negative mindset
I hope your panic attacks get better, they are hard to deal with but it's good that you can try to calm yourself down. I hope that you are ok, thank you for your comment.
I love the symbolism behind the ''good'',
Really makes you think..
Great poem!
I love the 'I'm good'.
I interpret it as trying to reassure yourself, I'm good.. repeating it in the mind and then at the end muttering it out loud as if that makes it final and true.
Very nice OP!
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Hi thanks for sharing this really cool poem. I really like how you used “I’m good” to simulate the heat beat. This is very clever, you have the thud thud sound of the words and the idea of trying to calm your nerves.
The title “do you recall” was somehow reminding me of a song and part of a tune. I was thinking it might be a reference to something deep and was trying to remember it. Then I finally realized it was Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer, “Do you recall, the most famous reindeer of all?” I'm very sorry haha.
I like the coffee machine part as the coffee adds the idea of being shaky, nervous and overstimulated as well as introducing the loud heart beat idea.
I might suggest changing up the order of the poem a bit. Although I love the “I’m
good” part, I feel like it isn’t needed twice and it’s better to end the poem on a bang.
This is just an idea so feel free to ignore these changes:
“My heart beats louder than the coffee machine.
I'm good.
I'm good.
I'm good.
as I continue to stare off
Tears threaten to fall as I remember who I am,
Who I was.
All these memories shake me.”
That's really funny that you thought of Rudolph the red nose reindeer. You know Dasher and dancer and Vixen. Anyway, I like your suggest but I think repeating the I'm good line cuts through the pain of the thoughts and is the character trying to escape their thoughts and come back to the physical world. I don't know if that makes sense. Have a great day and thank you for your comment.
Yeah that makes sense! Good luck and thanks for sharing a part of yourself.