Date and Time

  Something that stood out to me in Phil Kaye’s Date and Time is how in his poems, he includes memories from different periods of his life. This creates a juxtaposition that makes me aware of how much can change with the passing of time. One poem where I found this especially prevalent is “Sick Day”. This poem begins with Kaye detailing a typical ‘sick’ day from his youth in 1998. Kaye details a typical ploy to stay home from school - pretending to be sick. He says “actual illness optional/though not recommended” (Kaye, 77). Kaye then goes on to describe a nostalgic memory for most of us; staying home from school and having our parents take care of us while really listening to music and watching tv all day. Reading this first half of the poem, I felt a sense of comfort because it brought back memories of my sick days (both fake and real) from my childhood. Although Kaye’s specific experience of his sick day is unique to him, the experience is somewhat universal so readers are able to relate on some level. 

Kaye then juxtaposes this childhood memory with being ill when he is grown in 2018. This time, there is no comforting element and the innocence of sick days in childhood has dissolved. Kaye writes, “mostly the white ceiling/and sweat - tidal/ drying welling damp” (Kaye, 77). The way Kaye describes his experience in 2018 creates a feeling of discomfort and anxiety. I immediately was taken back to the first time I was sick at college and no one was there to comfort me besides myself. It was only with the absence of the comfort of my home and my parents that I realized how much those elements had made me feel safe and comfortable. Times like this make me reflect on how my life changes over time and how nostalgic I get about little things from my childhood. 

Kaye does a good job of describing of how you experience things differently at different points in your life. Your surroundings and understanding change over time which allow you to experience situations in new ways. Thinking about this has made me very reflective of how I experience situations now versus how I experienced them as a child. This relates to time because how you experience a situation indicates passing time and a change within yourself that comes over time. 

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