MIT Reads discussion

Introspective

This will be a discussion about "Playing Fetch with the Grim" (link out to poem) by Cam Kelley published by the literary journal Strange Horizons on March 2, 2020.

With so much time alone, or at least inside and doing significantly less work, some of us might have the time to be more contemplative, many of us are using this opportunity to learn more, cultivate new hobbies, and grow. In dark times, isolation and frustration will show us who we are, and we get to choose how we react. At least that's what I thought of when I read this poem.

How does this poem make you think about the way you're spending your time in isolation? How do you relate to the poem? What other self would you like to cultivate in this time? How does it feel to have so much time inside? How ready do you feel to "take the new skin" offered to you by this situation?

What questions or thoughts do you have?

This poem reminded me that the darker side of ourselves - the parts that we might not choose, that we might find shameful - are not only necessary but also useful. It's hard to embrace our "lesser" selves but perhaps if we refuse to we are somehow giving them more power than they need to have.