On Magnolia Tree in Kansas by Caryn Mirriam-Goldberg
by Janice Northerns
Hi, this is Janice Northerns, coming to you from Wichita, Kansas, for Poets on the Plains. Today, I’d like to share a poem by Caryn Mirriam-Goldberg, who served as the Kansas Poet Laureate from 2009-13. Caryn is the author of 24 books, as well as a writing workshop facilitator and writing coach. The poem I’m reading today is Magnolia Tree in Kansas which is from her 2020 book, How Time Moves: New & Selected Poems.
Magnolia Tree in Kansas
This is the tree that breaks
into blossom too early each March,
killing its flowers. This is the tree
that hums anyway in its pool of fallen
petals, pink as moonlight. Not a bouquet
on a stick. Not a lost mammal in the clearing
although it looks like both with its explosions
of rosy boats—illuminated, red-edged.
Not a human thing but closer to what we might be
than the careful cedar or snakeskin sycamore.
It cries. It opens. It submits. In the pinnacle
of its stem and the pits of its fruitless fruit,
it knows how a song can break the singer.
In the brass of its wind, it sings anyway.
Tree of all breaking. Tree of all upside down.
Tree that hurts in its bones and doesn’t care.
Tree of the first exhalation
landing and swaying, perfume and death,
all arms and no legs. Tree that never
learns to hold back.
Used with permission
This poem immediately captivated me, partly because of my own experience with a magnolia tree in my backyard when I lived in southwest Kansas. We sometimes think of reading as a solitary activity, but it’s always a conversation between writer and reader. The writer offers us words, images and insights, but as readers, we bring our own background and knowledge to the poem, which deepens our appreciation for the work.
As I read about the tree blooming too early and then freezing, there was that delight in recognizing how perfectly the writer captured a situation I had encountered.
The third or fourth time I read this poem, the opening, “This is a tree that breaks into blossom” reminded me of another poem: A Blessing by James Wright, which ends with these words, “Suddenly I realize / That if I stepped out of my body / I would break into blossom.” As readers, when we come across an allusion like this, it’s an additional way to connect with Mirriam-Goldberg’s piece and to enhance the conversation between writer and reader.
I enjoyed the lush imagery and description throughout Magnolia Tree in Kansas. I think my favorite phrase is “explosions of rosy boats.” Those words are just fun to read aloud, too.
This is also a powerful poem. That power is derived in large part from the writer’s personification of the magnolia tree. Even though we read midway through the piece that the tree is “not a human thing,” it behaves in a most human way. The poet tells us “It cries. It opens. It submits.” The tree also hums and sings and “hurts in its bones.” The result of this personification is a tree that has agency. It is not a passive victim. It is the tree “that breaks into blossom too early” and kills its flowers. The weather is not responsible. Immediately afterward, we read that “the tree hums anyway,” injecting a sense of resilience and happiness into the work.
This is a tree that takes risks, a trait the writer emphasizes by using the word “break” or “breaking” three times. The tree “breaks into blossom, ” and the tree “knows how a song can break the singer.” And near the end, it is described as “Tree of all breaking.” Throughout this poem there is that lovely thread of risk-taking that can result in pain but ultimately seems to bring exuberance and joy. The poets tell us this is a “tree that never learns to hold back.” And by the end of the poem, we wouldn’t have it any other way.
For Poets on the Plains, this is Janice Northerns in Wichita, wishing you the joy and resilience of a Magnolia Tree in Kansas.
POETS ON THE PLAINS HOST
Janice Northerns is the author of Some Electric Hum, winner of the Byron Caldwell Smith Book Award from the University of Kansas, the Kansas Authors Club Nelson Poetry Book Award, anda WILLA Literary Award Finalist in Poetry. The author grew up on a farm in Texas and holds degrees from Texas Tech University, where she received the Robert S. Newton Creative Writing Award. Her poetry has been nominated for Pushcart and Best of the Net prizes. After living in southwest Kansas for 25 years, she and her husband moved to Wichita in 2023. She is active in the local chapter of the Kansas Authors Club and presents workshops locally and at the state level. Learn more on her website: www.janicenortherns.com
FEATURED POET
Caryn Mirriam-Goldberg, Ph.D., the 2009-13 Kansas Poet Laureate is the author of 24 books, including How Time Moves: New & Selected Poems; Miriam's Well, a novel; The Sky Begins at Your Feet: A Memoir on Cancer, Community, and Coming Home to the Body. Founder of Transformative Language Arts, she is a beloved writing workshop facilitator and writing coach. She loves life-giving collaborations: she offers YourRightLivelihood.com with Kathryn Lorenzen, Bravevoice.com with Kelley Hunt, and TheArtofFacilitation.net with Joy Roulier Sawyer. She offers weekly “Write Where You Are: A Writer’s Companion” through her Patreon page and her blog, “Everyday Magic” at CarynMirriamGoldberg.com.
