Thoughts on Whereas by Layli Long Solider

Layli Long Solider did more than just write a poetry book, they educated their readers, brought light to forgotten or unmentioned history, and defined concepts that some may not pay any attention to. I was in awe reading this particular reading for this week, it made me venture out of the book and dig for more. This book prompts the reader to do outside research and explore a history no longer talked about. I could not just pick one or two poems to talk about in my reflection but seven that completely wow'd me yet I will only talk about my favorite three.

The first poem, "leftist," felt like a definition lesson, explaining what a leftist is with an example and structure to the poem. I found this one enlightening because it held strength, you could argue with it but you could not defeat a definition. I enjoyed the line "support of social change to create egalitarian society." This line jumps at the reader, it defends a leftist and does not want to hear any other definition.

The second poem on pg 26, brings in a little from the poet, noting that not all (or any) of the work they write is meant to be understood by the readers. This poem explores the identity of writing to Long Solider. This poem reminds me of when readers try to break down what the poet is saying but can misinterpret words/sentences in their work when the piece is really only meant for the writer to cherish and admire. This poem brings strength to the poet, putting down that it is only meant for them to remember.

The third poem, "Whereas" on pg 78 was the one that you could not stop reading and dropped your jaw when you got to the end of it. Long Solider brings in either their experience or a shared experience with others. This poem felt like a story being told all while thinking in your head For example, I imagined this as someone talking to Long Solider and this piece was their thought all while this other person was talking to them. The poem is quite expressive, hearing someone tell the poet they did not know Indians could feel. This poem is from the last collection of the book titled "Whereas" where every poem begins with "whereas." In the beginning of the collection, Long Solider gives insight to an act of apology made my President Obama which was never read as an apology and thus hurt the community it was meant for because while the apology was written, it was never directed to anyone who it belonged to. This act was meant to be a kind of resolution to the abuse and mistreatment that occurred and continues to. The poem on pg 82 addresses the "concept" of resolution and mocks this apology because anyone could drop in the word resolution and it still would not do the job.

Overall, I really enjoyed reading this poetry book, it is one that we need more of, one we need to show our friends and everyone around us. Layli Long Solider wanted people to hear their voice and us reading this and supporting them is doing just that. Thank you Layli, your words are heard and alive.