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Photo by bharath g s on Unsplash

Poetry | November /December 2020

E: Everyday Exaltation

By Kathryn Petruccelli

The origin of the letter E is a pictograph of a person with arms raised in jubilation or prayer. By itself, the hieroglyph meant “joy” in ancient Egypt.

 

My son emcees 
his own performance:
Me sing ABC song.
And so he begins—
A, B, C, D, F, G. H, I, J, K . . .
 
All day I hear this version 
of the alphabet. Always 
the E missing, as if it's been
forgotten along with the plastic 
farm animals and the once-
treasured dump truck 
on the floor of his room. 
What does a two-year-old 
care if it's the most 
common letter in four 
major languages?
And when he's done 
applauding himself, 
he throws his hands
in the air, laughing, 
Up, Mommy!
Isn't the symbol itself 
superfluous then?
What else could this 
be about other than joy, 
than jubilation? 

1 reply on “E: Everyday Exaltation”

Alexandria Haddensays:
November 19, 2020 at 3:39 pm

E.E.E.E.
Lovely! Thank you for reminding me to see joy and celebrate laughter.

Reply

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