The Hill We Climb

I distinctly remember being blown away by the author's recital during the inauguration, and I watched it on YouTube today before reading the poem slowly to appreciate it in a different way. Even if the world on the whole seems to have changed for the worse and not for the better since then, to me the poem is still perfect, both in its form and language and in its message. Reading it slowly in a book made me appreciate the rhythm, the alliterations and the word play even more.

As for the message, I want to quote the ending of the poem:

For there is always light,
If only we are brave enough to see it,
If only we are brave enough to be it.

This resonates with me even more today than three years ago.

On 20 January 2021, I was incredibly moved by Amanda Gorman's address at President Biden's Inauguration. Gorman was the youngest presidential inaugural poet in US history and she definitely made an impression on those present that reverberated around the world. Watching her deliver her poem entitled The Hill We Climb, I was excited by this young mind and my admiration for her continues to grow.

Receiving a stunning hardback copy of The Hill We Climb for Christmas, I made sure to read this exactly a year to the day of the Inauguration event and was still moved by her words. They're just as relevant now as they were then and I doubt her message will ever date. Reading it every other day since then, (it's only 27 pages long), I decided to show more read her words while watching the video footage from that auspicious day in preparation for this review.

Gorman eloquently delivers a message of promise and hope, and in doing so, she has given every American a vision to aspire to:

"Because being American is more than a pride we inherit -
It's the past we step into, and how we repair it." Page 17

The Hill We Climb is inspiring to read, and watching Gorman's gestures, cadence, rhythm and delivery style elevates the experience to a whole new level.

If you haven't heard, watched or read The Hill We Climb by Amanda Gorman, I heartily recommend you do. It'll be the best 6 mins or 27 pages you'll ever experience. In the meantime, I'll leave you with my favourite section of the poem:

"In this truth, in this faith, we trust.
For while we have our eyes on the future,
History has its eyes on us." Page 19 show less

I’m German. I’ve never watched an inauguration of an American president. The one of today’s President Joe Biden was no exception even though I was hoping for something better than what had come before… ("It seems to me that I have been dreaming a horrid dream for four years, and now the nightmare is gone.”)

Amanda Gorman’s amazing poem hit the German news very quickly, though, and I got curious and looked it up, watched Gorman perform it at the inauguration. It hit me unexpectedly hard; so hard, in fact, I cried.

Her presentation was so powerful, emotional, touching and uplifting; representative - to me - of all that is right and just about the United States.

Gorman envisions a country “committed To all cultures, colors, show more characters, And conditions of man” and while, of course, she primarily addresses the USA, she also spoke to the world and of the world.

If we, the peoples of the world, made into reality in our countries what Gorman wishes for her own one, if we truly and honestly, sought “harm to none, and harmony for all” - regardless of gender, skin colour, sexual orientation, etc. - then, yes, then “We will raise this wounded world into a wondrous one.”

Today, I was finally able to read the poem in its own ebook while simultaneously watching Gorman’s recitation which lent the experience further depth. Try for yourself: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wz4YuEvJ3y4


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A beautiful poem written for Joe Biden’s inauguration, Ms. Gorman’s “The Hill We Climb” rightly describes the United States as a country, not striving for perfection, but working toward improvement. While the overarching theme is hope, Ms. Gorman does not whitewash the reality of the social and political divide, the divisiveness and hatred and violence that has risen and thrived in this dark period of our country. It's an anthem meant to be read aloud, with its dynamic cadence, rhymes, and rhythms . I read it through once silently, but found something transformative in reading it aloud the second time.

Watching Amanda Gorman perform this at Joe Biden's inauguration made me tear up - reading it now is still just as powerful as hearing it for the first time. I am in awe that a 22 year old wrote such a powerful and transcendent poem that will long be hailed as a masterpiece. It's a dream, a manifesto, a plea, and a prayer. Her poem encapsulates our country's past, present, and future. I can't wait to follow this young poet's career and read more of her works. Awe-inspiring doesn't even begin to give her enough credit. She's a marvel.

When I heard this, one year ago today, I teared up at its beauty. Reading it on it's anniversary, I teared up again! Gorman is amazing, and this poem is perfect. Like this line, which I was in awe of when I first hear it - "And the norms and notions of what "just is" Isn't always justice." Wow.

I hope our country can realize the ideas she puts forth herein. I hope we're on the road to recovery, and not headed for a road to ruin. Like Ms. Gorman ends her poem -

"If only we're brave enough to see it. If only we're brave enough to be it."

Amen.

Poetry appreciation is a challenge for me — rarely do poems speak to me in a way that it seems they do to others. So whenever the annual Read Harder challenge calls for poetry I tend to seek out something relatively easy and which will not require intense interpretation. Having said that, I think that even the most poetry-challenged of us can admire and recognize the beauty in Amanda Gorman's "The Hill We Climb." She is clearly a master at elegant wordsmithing, and has a flair for both alliteration and a subtle slipping in of rhyme. Her recitation at Biden's 2021 presidential inauguration was amazing, and the print experience, during which I could take my time and savor each brilliant page, was no less so.