Mid-Term Break by Seamus Heaney

Mid-Term Break

I sat all morning in the college sick bay

Counting bells knelling classes to a close.

At two o’clock our neighbors drove me home.

In the porch I met my father crying-

He had always taken funerals in stride-

And Big Jim Evans saying it was a hard blow.

The baby cooed and laughed and rocked the pram

When I came in, and I was embarrassed

By old men standing up to shake my hand

And tell me they were “sorry for my trouble,”

Whispers informed strangers I was the eldest,

Away at school, as my mother held my hand

In hers and coughed out angry, tearless sighs.

At ten o’clock the ambulance arrived

With the corpse, stanched and bandaged by the nurses.

Next morning I went up into the room. Snowdrops

And candles soothed the bedside; I saw him

For the first time in six weeks. Paler now,

Wearing a poppy bruise on his left temple,

He lay in the four foot box as in his cot.

No gaudy scars, the bumper knocked him clear.

A four foot box, a foot for every year.

-Seamus Heaney

            When I first read the title of this poem, “Mid-Term Break,” I thought that this poem was going to be funny or relatable to me because I can remember the times during winter break going sledding, drinking hot chocolate, and watching movies. However, this was very much not the case.

            This poem is very impactful because it was vastly different than my initial thoughts of this poem and it really struck a heartstring with me. This poem is about a four year old brother being hit and killed by a car while the older sister was away at college. What makes this poem so impactful and tear-jerking is that it is about the loss of innocence and youth vanquishing at such a promising time in the boy’s life.

            The structure of this poem helps the story of death to flow; from the harrowing journey home after finding out the news to finally seeing the body of her little brother. The tone is very somber and maybe a little distant but still captures the emotions needed to tackle the difficult and tragic subject of accidental childhood death. The poem also has a lot of imagery about the awkward and difficult moments of funerals and gatherings after a loved one dies.

            I liked this poem because it caught me off guard from what I had predicted the poem would be about; although it was sad, this poem really memorable to me.