Analyze Seize the Day

    The poem Carpe Dien(Seize the Day) is written by Judith Ortiz Coler. This poem has nine stanzas. The first seven stanzas talks about the things that happen to people during the day, and the last two talks about the ones that happen to them at night. People think the main theme of the poem is to show people how beautiful and important life is. There are lots details included in this poem that describes about the little things that take place in our lives and the small figures that encountered us in this long journey. Every small piece of those memories combine together to make who we are.  However, it also tells people to seek more in their lives. What really matters is what they do instead of what they earn.

In the sixth stanza of the poem, the author says, “Love your work and enjoy your play. Remember, there is little lasting joy in things done only for gold or fame. Without love, your spirit will be a flower picked without purpose and thrown on the ground to be trampled by anyone.” This stanza really stands out to me. When I first read the poem, I noticed the assonance in this stanza. The massive use of the vowel “o” attracted by attention. As I read more closely to the poem, I expended one the meaning of those lines as well. “A flower picked without purpose”. To me, it sounds just like a life that’s been weasted. Such a pretty flower, worked itself so hard to be pretty, but ended up “thrown onto the ground”. It’s just like “the work done for gold and fame”, full fill the prettiness on the outside, bring nothing else. What can a flower picked with purpose do? So much more. Imagine a little boy picking up a rose carefully and hand it to the little girl besides her. I can even see the big big smiles on their faces and loud the laughter of that lucky little girl. Compare that image of a rose thrown, trampled, I suddenly have a deeper understanding of purpose in life.

Another stanza that stands out to me is the second to the last stanza. It talks about what people should do before they go to sleep. This stanza is the longest stanza in the poem. It tells people that they should give themselves some time to think through their mind, speaking in their native toughs and greet their ancestors.Those ideas deeply touched me. I always encourage myself to speak more english in order to improve my skills and to be better at it. But I never really pay attention to learning more about my own language. Those lines reminds me of the times that I couldn’t think of the way to write certain characters in Chinese that I used to know, and the feeling of forgetting certain phrases that I hear a lot. I feel ashamed for forgetting my own culture. After reading this poem, I realized the importance of knowing where my root is as I explore the bigger world. It is necessary to learn new things, and it’s also necessary to never forget what we have learned.