Friendship
In “Three Persons,” the narrator describes how he serves as a mediator and observer between two of his friends—one of whom grew up to be successful and wealthy, the other who is now impoverished and homeless. The narrator was friends with both of these unnamed individuals and has taken it upon himself to observe them both and watch over them. This poem captures the powerful bonds of friendship and the lengths to which true friends will go to cherish and protect one another. Though the first friend is far more successful and wealthier than the second, the homeless man is never jealous of his friend. Rather, he wishes him all the best and wants to remain informed of his successes and endeavors. This captures the true beauty of authentic friendship, in which friends support, rally behind, and encourage each other, regardless of circumstance.
The Grieving Process
The narrator of “Bright Copper Kettles” is grieving the death of an unnamed loved one and he has discovered that when he sleeps, these deceased individuals visit him in his dreams. The narrator soon becomes obsessed with these dreams, as it gives him a chance to see, hug, and speak with those who have passed. Because his heart is so heavy with grief, the man spends most of days and night sleeping; he is so desperate to make contact with those he has lost that he wants to live in his dreams, rather than in the real world. Though the narrator is quite content with his solution to his grief, the reality is far more grim. The man sleeps all day and, as such, is not participating in normal, every-day events. He has completely lost touch with reality and is so desperate to exist solely in his dreams that he sleeps all day, likely as a result of his depression. As such, this poem is a sorrowful commentary on the grieving process and humanity’s attempts to stay connected to those we have lost.
Eternal Life on Earth
In “Sequence,” Seshadri describes the three stages of post-death existence—hell, purgatory, and heaven. He suggests that Hell is reserved for a very small group of people—those people who are truly, deeply evil. Purgatory, however, is where most humans exist; we are neither completely good nor completely evil and, as such, we end up in purgatory—this in-between, limbo-like stage of death. Interestingly enough, when Seshadri describes the final stage in the sequence, heaven, he does not include any humans or people. Rather, the subject for this final stage is a mammal. The mammal is living in a mountaintop that has been ravaged by wildfire. As such, the animal is parched and in desperate search of water. Upon finding a flowing stream of water from which to drink, the animal is able to quench its thirst and live another day. In this way, Seshadri suggests that all levels of eternal existence can be observed on Earth. Hell is captured in those very few individuals whose souls are corrupted and deeply evil. Most of us are trapped in purgatory—we are in limbo, trying to find a balance between our good and bad tendencies. Heaven is rarely achieved by humans on earth but can rather be found in the natural world all around us. In this way, Seshadri suggests that the stages of eternal life can all be found within the elements, people, and animals that currently exist on Earth.
