Locomotion

Poetry has never been a favorite of mine.  There have poetry units in nearly every language arts class I have been in, and I have always found myself discouraged and disgruntled.  I never found my words were poetic or anything different from a story I could have written.  It all seemed awkward to me.  Locomotion, by Jacqueline Woodson, however, has helped steer me toward a slightly more positive opinion of poetry.  The way each poem tells a mini story about the main character (Lonnie)'s life is enlightening.  It made me much more open to reading the story because it seemed almost more sincere in the way it was written.  Poetry is known to come from the heart and often express emotion. Lonnie seemed sincere and almost unfiltered in the thoughts he shared throughout the story.  I want to touch on Lonnie's method of sharing his story, the significance of poetry as the method of writing, and lastly the connections I was able to make with Lonnie even though he lived in a completely different place and time than I do now.  All of these pieces I got from the story truly helped to bring poetry alive for me, and I will start with Lonnie and the character he portrayed himself as.

Lonnie does not seem to have much of a filter as he tells his story.  He tells things as he sees them.  On days that he doesn’t like his teacher, for example, he expresses that blatantly in his writing.  Once Lonnie says, “Sometimes Ms. Marcus makes me sick!” (49)  It is almost humorous as much as it is perfectly human and understandable that Lonnie is having a bad day.  I appreciate that he is willing to share his day with us.  The poem shows that writing is not always about the beautiful flowers and love in life.  I think Lonnie gets his messages across so well because he is never afraid to show his true emotions.  There are times when he is lost in sorrow about his parents.  There are times when he is seeking hope to fully reunite with his sister again.  His complete honesty allows me to relate to him much more and feel how he feels.  In the same way, I feel that only poetry can make these emotions clear.

            Lonnie says early in the story that “this whole book’s a poem because poetry’s short and/ this whole book’s a poem ‘cause Ms. Marcus says/ write it down before it leaves your brain” (1).  Poetry is short and to the point.  In so few words, poetry can portray a lifetime of emotion.  Lonnie tells us that early on in life he loses his parents to a fire. Shortly after, he loses his sister to a different foster parent.  As a result, he is forced to start his life over again and find peace within.  The entire story is a sort of window that allows us to watch Lonnie slowly accept his new life with the new people surrounding him.  This progress is revealed with a combination of flashback poems and poems of present situations.  I feel that his artistic flow keeps me motivated to continue reading.  I can feel how much Lonnie is putting into his work.  I can feel how much he cares about what he is writing because there is some sort of system and thought to every word of each poem he is putting to a page.  For this reason, I feel that poetry is the best choice for a story like this.  It keeps me close to the reader and so understanding of the life that he is living.

            I feel that I can somewhat relate to Lonnie because he is an elementary student growing up trying to fit in and find meaning in life.  I always struggled to fit in all the way through my junior year in high school.  I was always looking to find the right friends, and I judged and tried to understand everyone around me in order to do that.  Lonnie seems to do the same throughout this story.  He is also seeking to please his sister in any way he possibly can.  He continues to search for his ultimate belief in God, and it doesn’t always seem to be an easy task.  When I was in elementary school, I also wanted to please everyone around me because I felt accepted and loved.  These little connections I can make allow me to understand the bigger picture of the situation Lonnie is living.  Through his poetry, I can understand that Lonnie just wants his family.  Lonnie wants to be loved.  It is only human to want that love and belonging in the world.  Lonnie has had a tougher life than some of us have, but I appreciate that it all comes down to one fundamental human need: love.  Because I could make such a connection so important to my own needs in life, I appreciate this story all the more because it brings poetry and my heart together as one.