Poets make the attempt to reconcile raw experience with abstract thought. War poets are an interesting subset, because their observations can be an attempt to "make sense of" that which fundamentally is hard to ever understand, at least neatly (war). Here's an "ode to springtime" of a sort, by a British World War II poet, Henry Reed. The illustration is of "japonica," which is referenced in the poem. (Other poetry by Reed is linked, here.)
NAMING OF PARTS
A Poem from the Forces
“To-day we have naming of parts. Yesterday
We had daily cleaning. And to-morrow morning
We shall have what to do after firing. But to-day,
To-day we have naming of parts. Japonica
Glistens like coral in all of the neighboring gardens,
And to-day we have naming of parts.
This is the lower sling swivel. And this
Is the upper sling swivel, whose use you will see of,
When you are given your slings. And this is the piling swivel,
Which in your case you have not got. The branches
Hold in the gardens their silent, eloquent gestures,
Which in our case we have not got.
This is the safety-catch, which is always released
With an easy flick of the thumb. And please do not let me
See anyone using his finger. You can do it quite easy
If you have any strength in your thumb. The blossoms
Are fragile and motionless, never letting anyone see
Any of them using their finger.
And this you can see is the bolt. The purpose of this
Is to open the breach, as you see. We can slide it
Rapidly backwards and forwards: we call this
Easing the spring. And rapidly backwards and forwards
The early bees are assaulting and fumbling the flowers:
They call it easing the Spring.
They call it easing the Spring: it is perfectly easy
If you have any strength in your thumb:
Like the bolt,
And the breach, and the cocking-piece, and the point of balance,
Which in our case we have not got, and the almond-blossom
Silent in all of the gardens, the bees going backward and forwards,
For to-day we have naming of parts.”
-- Henry Reed. First published in “The New Statesman and Nation, The Week-end Review, Incorporating the Athenaeum,” August 8, 1942.
