We lay down our arms
So we can reach out our arms
To one another.
We seek harm to none and harmony for all.
The double meaning of “arms” and the rhyme “arm(s)/harm/harmony” is brilliant.
I also like the point she makes generally in the poem about America not being perfect but a work in progress.
Added in:
Amanda Gorman, National Youth Poet Laureate at Summer Academy 2018
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iMbCbKR1Lew&t=216s
National Youth Poet Laureate Amanda Gorman Performs At The Forbes Women's Summit | Forbes
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZojzZ-BivEQ
Amanda Gorman, Activist and National Youth Poet Laureate | Amanpour and Company
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FpR7iELvVrI
Her voice in the inauguration poem was musical with a nice cadence. What struck me the most was how she rarely paused or took a breath between lines or sentences. It kind of reminded me of those YouTube videos that are edited and spliced so that the speaker never once takes a breath. You’ve heard those I’m sure. It doesn't give the listener much time to digest and reflect on the sentence before the next one comes.
It also reminded me of how some clarinet players can do what’s called circular breathing, where they can play long passages without stopping.
PS - In the above videos, Amando
does take pauses between sentences.