"To Myself" by W.S. Merwin

My first reaction to this poem was that it needs punctuation because as a reader, it was difficult to differentiate where the breaks in thought were. Beyond that, I came to think that this poem was about change, more specifically about how the author has changed throughout his lifetime because the poem is titled "To Myself".

The line, "...I believe I would know you I keep remembering you sometimes long ago but then other times I am sure you were here a moment before..." really stuck out to me because it reminds me how much I've changed and how far I've come in my short lifetime so far. It reminds me of when I was back in 8th Grade and realizing that high school was going to be only four short years and I would have to pick a college and decide what I want to do for the rest of my life; I was so worried and stressed because I didnt' adapt well to change and I had a huge fear of the unknown. Flash forward to present day and I'm a senior in high school and planning on attending CSU next fall, I still have no idea what I want to do for the rest of my life but I'm OK with that for now. Looking back, I can see how much my ideals, thinking, and self-confidence has grown but there's still the moments when I revert back to greatly fearing the unknown, just like the author did in the poem; for a fleeting second, it seems as if I haven't changed at all but in reality, I've changed a lot.

I think that W.S. Merwin wrote this poem because he realizes that change is inevitable and this poem is just a way of solidifying his acceptance of change.

This poem also reminds me of the times that I go back and reread the diary entries that I tried (and failed) to write because it reminds me of how over time, different things become important to me and it's also funny to see my old handwriting and read about how I gave my dog a bath or I how I was worried if one of my friends didn't want to hang out with me anymore. I enjoyed reading this poem because it was humbling to reflect back on the changes in my life and realize how far I've come and how much more I have to go.