On Oct. 29th, I attended the Literature is Alive poetry reading in B & N bookstore. It was 8 pm. The light was dim, a perfect environment to listen to poetry because when we are not able to see very clearly, we will focus more on what we can hear and feel. The tapes we listened to were original tapes in which poetry were read in languages in which they were written. Before the reading started, I thought that since I did not know those languages, there were no ways that I could understand those poems. However, I was only half right. The first five poems were written by a Colombian poet Eliana Maldonado Cano. The reader’s voice was plain, creating a peaceful feeling. I liked the fifth poem “Memory 2” most. In this poem, Eliana writes, “Sometimes we encounter, someone who reaches out from the body without windows…… In the real world this does not exist, we lack the courage to draw the words out from the veins.” I was not sure whether this poem was describing a feeling of admiration or friendship or love. But it is just this hazy feeling and unlimited potentiality that make poetry so beautiful.

Unlike the plain voice of the reader of Eliana’s poems, the voice of the reader of Juan Salzano’s poem was full of emotions. Some words in Juan’s poem “Jellyfish 1” like “translucid animal”, ”omnivorous soul”, ”bears the weapon”, ”explode”, ”scaffolding” all symbolized strong conflicts in the poet’s mind. Correspondingly, the emotions in the reader’s voice changed from passionate to melancholy and sad then to sorrowful and tired; and finally went back to plain and flat, like a kind of exhausted despair. It is true that I could not read the original poem and nor could I understand what the reader was reading but listening to the tape actually created a feeling of having dialogues with the poet. Though there are undeniable linguistic and cultural barriers between us, I could still empathize and engage in this poem. It is just this universal understanding that makes art so great and eternal.