So Much Depends

There were too many perplexing questions needing answers in my day and I was overdone. Attempting sleep, I took deep breaths and quieted my mind. As I cleared out space, into the vacuum came William Carlos Williams’ “The Red Wheelbarrow.”

In my sleepy state, it wasn’t words that came; it was a scene. A red wheelbarrow in green grass, dew sparkling, sun streaming. A slight breeze, sounds of grasses humming, birds calling drowsily. And I, drowsy too, drifted off.

The next day I read the poem.

so much depends
upon

a red wheel
barrow

glazed with rain
water

beside the white
chickens

Ah, so sparse, so unfettered by capitalization and punctuation. Clean. Crisp. Only 16 words. If it weren’t for the first 4 of them, I would have felt satiated by the simplicity. Instead, I was reminded of a perplexing high school English class explication where we worked to answer the question, “What depends upon the wheelbarrow?”

I didn’t have a clue back then, even though words were my jam and explicating was too. The simplicity of the poem stumped me. There were no real clues to help me decode meaning. It was frustrating.

Now, I have some ideas. Maybe man’s work that roots him solidly in the earth which sustains him depends on the red wheelbarrow. Maybe the health and happiness that is generated from harmony with nature depends on the red wheelbarrow. Maybe the serenity of the simple life depends on the red wheelbarrow.

Maybe I depend on the red wheelbarrow too.

**Also, can I recommend this piece that I found during my Williams reading spree? Lovely.