Remember Powerfully

 With my first glance at the title: Remember by Joy Harjo (presented in a Poetry Panel Project presentation), I thought that the poem would be about the speaker maintaining their cultural heritage. And indeed it was but what I did not expect was how powerful this poem could be. With just simple and everyday words, Harjo communicated her Native American identity, but most importantly she pushed her readers to never forget their own culture and heritage.

One big fact to note is that in many Native American tribes, nature was a vital part of the culture. People admired their surrounding world and performed many religious rituals to honor this environment that gave us life. The importance of such in their culture is imperative and Harjo uses her poem to convey such. She mentions several times to remember “the moon,” “the sun’s birth,” “the earth,” “the plants, trees, animal life,” and a lot more. I found these really interesting because these hint towards her Native American identity and connect her to her heritage.

Yet, I did not find this as the reason for the poem's power. What makes it extraordinary is its commanding tone combined with its message. It orders the reader to remember their heritage, and the lines that stand out the most are “Remember your birth, how your mother struggled / to give you form and breath. You are evidence of / her life, and her mother’s, and hers.” By saying the words, “her life, and her mother’s, and hers,” the speaker reminds the reader that the blood of her descendants flows in her veins, and thus her culture remains alive. She can never leave that identity of her and will always be connected to her heritage, which she tries to preserve. Furthermore, by mentioning “mother struggle,” the speaker hints that if she forgets her culture, she would disrespect her ancestors, and this emotion is what forces her actions of remembrance.

As she maintains these feelings by saying “remember” repeatedly, it seems like she is talking to the reader, and this, combined with her second person POV, makes the reader share the feelings with her. Since her readers belong from various different backgrounds of life, her message seems universal and not just limited to native american identity. This connection with the reader, that makes them reflect on themselves, gives the poems its strength. Furthermore, the commanding tone portrays her in a position of authority, and thus her words become powerful, in the sense that they must be followed. And such reminds her audience, like me, to commemorate our heritage which is an inevitable part of us.