Edward Estlin Cummings , born in October 14, 1894 and died September 3, 1962, was popularly known as E. E. Cummings, with the abbreviated form of his name often written by others in lowercase letters as e.e. cummings , was an American poet, painter, essayist, author, and playwright. His work encompasses approximately 2,900 poems, two autobiographical novels, four plays and several essays, as well as numerous drawings and paintings. Many of his poems are sonnets, albeit ones with a more modern twist, and they often deal with the themes of love and nature, as Denny Bradbury does in her poem “My Gift To You” from her new collection “De-versify”:

“ The discontent of winter
Lies heavy on your brow
The eyes once full of summer sun
Shine solemn, wistful now….
Oh! Love is summer, it is spring
But love is winter too
Be happy in the tide of life
My love, my gift to you.”

Whilst E.E.Cummings’ poems lean towards the romantic tradition, he has a particular style of arranging individual words into larger phrases and sentences, and rule-breaking with his punctuation as is evident in his poem “I carry your heart with me”:

“I carry your heart with me (i carry it in
my heart) i am never without it (anywhere
i go you go, my dear; and whatever is done
by only me is your doing, my darling)
i fear
no fate (for you are my fate, my sweet) i want
no world (for beautiful you are my world, my true)
and it’s you are whatever a moon has always meant
and whatever a sun will always sing is you

here is the deepest secret nobody knows
(here is the root of the root and the bud of the bud
and the sky of the sky of a tree called life; which grows
higher than the soul can hope or mind can hide)
and this is the wonder that’s keeping the stars apart

i carry your heart(i carry it in my heart)”

The poem is a favourite for being recited at weddings, due to its description of a deep and profound love. Despite the fact it is one line longer than the standard sonnet – in keeping with Cummings’ style of breaking with tradition –it is a poem that is easily read, easily spoken and easily understood by people of all ages.  Denny Bradbury, in her poem “Hold Me Gently” – also one line shorter than a usual sonnet – talks of the strength and power of someone’s love :

“Hold me gently
rock me deep
into the fathomless pool of a deep, deep sleep
there let me be till the sun reappears
and the heat of your love in the day
dries my tears..”

Read more of Denny Bradbury’s work in her new collection “De-versify” due to be published in 2013.