Bleeding Heart
Written by Carmen Gimenez Smith, Recited by Rachel Broniak
Does Your Heart Bleed Too?
Of course that's a metaphor. Why would I ask you if your heart was physically bleeding? That's not a question you would ask people.
What I am asking you is this: are you empathetic? For example, when you see someone else depressed, or a baby crying, do you feel the same but with no particular reason other than you saw them crying first? If yes, that means that you are an empathetic person. Being an empathetic person means being able to share another person's feelings. You hurt for others. That's what my interpretation of "Bleeding Heart" is. This poem explains the kinds of feelings you have when watching the world around you, thus the repeated line, "My heart is bleeding."
"Because it is mine, it will always bleed."
Why I Chose This Poem
"Bleeding Heart" is full of metaphors, and I love metaphors. Now, I don't know what message Smith intended to get across when she wrote this, but that's the fun part of reading poetry. You get to use your own personal interpretation that helps you relate to the poem. I relate to this poem because I interpreted it as a way of explaining what an empathetic person feels when watching the world around them, and I consider myself an empathetic person. My moods and emotions can be influenced pretty easily by the world around me. I also have a hard time putting my thoughts into words, and this poem helped me greatly by mostly putting into words what I can't.