Forgetfulness - Billy Collins Animated Poetry



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View poetry in an entirely new and innovative way. Billy Collins, former US Poet Laureate and one of America’s best-selling poets, reads his poem “Forgetfulness” with animation by Julian Grey of Headgear.

Noted for their intelligent humor, accessibility and observations on daily life, Collins’ popular poems come alive further in a series of animated poems produced by JWT-NY.

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The Poem - The name of the author is the first to go followed obediently by the title, the plot, the heartbreaking conclusion, the entire novel which suddenly becomes one you have never read, never even heard of, as if, one by one, the memories you used to harbor decided to retire to the southern hemisphere of the brain, to a little fishing village where there are no phones. Long ago you kissed the names of the nine Muses goodbye and watched the quadratic equation pack its bag, and even now as you memorize the order of the planets, something else is slipping away, a state flower perhaps, the address of an uncle, the capital of Paraguay. Whatever it is you are struggling to remember, it is not poised on the tip of your tongue, not even lurking in some obscure corner of your spleen. It has floated away down a dark mythological river whose name begins with an L as far as you can recall, well on your own way to oblivion where you will join those who have even forgotten how to swim and how to ride a bicycle. No wonder you rise in the middle of the night to look up the date of a famous battle in a book on war. No wonder the moon in the window seems to have drifted out of a love poem that you used to know by heart.

21 Comments so far

  1. Sullivan on February 29th, 2008

    how old was he when he wrote it?!
    i am fearful this will happen to me as I age!

  2. Elica on February 29th, 2008

    I love these.

  3. Alejandrina on February 29th, 2008

    Great poem! so sad…

  4. Sheridan on February 29th, 2008

    I forgot how to type…damn!

  5. Kaga on February 29th, 2008

    This is so true, a lot of times we forget bunches of memories for other things our mind prefer to use. But them are still in us, waiting the exact time in the exact moment. I love this guy.

  6. MORITZ on February 29th, 2008

    Dont toke so often, let your short term memory have a rest lol. awsome video man! thats the definition of my brain now.

  7. Ablendan on February 29th, 2008

    Careful — days turn into years…

  8. Ingel on February 29th, 2008

    Inspired? Inspired to do what? Forget more often and to greater extent?

  9. Liyana on February 29th, 2008

    its true!

  10. Lacina on February 29th, 2008

    this is so beautiful

  11. Sonia on February 29th, 2008

    That was great, I have days where I feel like that!!

  12. Codier on February 29th, 2008

    amazing.

  13. Willsn on February 29th, 2008

    thats really nice. im inspired. =]

  14. Coyan on February 29th, 2008

    Amazing vid—the visuals worked well and added to the poem. Keep it up!

  15. MAIBE on February 29th, 2008

    Fantastic, both words and pictures. And the last phrase, forgetting love poetry, (perhaps even love?) is a heart thumper.

  16. CHOCHMINGWU on February 29th, 2008

    You are brilliant…

  17. Hagan on February 29th, 2008

    Simply beautiful.

  18. Hagaward on February 29th, 2008

    a pleasure

  19. Olita on February 29th, 2008

    amazing…plz put on more of these man…and the animationi s just AMAZING..it makes it so much nicer to hear..Bravo!

  20. Egbertina on February 29th, 2008

    very true… collins is the poet of the ordinary folk…

  21. Senna on February 29th, 2008

    OH NO!! i DID forget the capital of paraguay!!

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