The Ankle and the Anchor (3)

Creator

Ray Williams

Preview

Creation Date

2024

Description

While sort of reimagining my body part narrative that I wrote earlier this semester, I garnered a change of perspective regarding my condition when I began to talk with my aunt.We talked about the complexities of my concurrent battle with my ankle problems, and we analyzed how it has affected me in the past when I didn’t know what was going on with my ankle to now in the present as i’m living with the echoing acknowledgement through slight occurrences.

In the construct of this book, I always thought back to my visit to special collections when I came across Martha Hall’s “Cove” artist book. Her use of distinctive colors like green, and a bluish teal underlying color mimic and create a sense of connection or resemblance to that of her illness of breast cancer and also her surroundings, being the cove.Also her accordion style type of artistic book struck an interest in my direction of my own book.In essence this book metaphorically captivated me through its particular ambiguity which shines a light of Martha and her struggles.With that I wanted my book to explore a similar cadence and theme regarding my ankle in a symbolic tone. That's when I thought about the ocean, and a boat anchor, and that's when I began writing a short poem about my ankle and its relation to these abstract things.

I realized that something was very symbolic about the entirety of my experience as I embarked on the journey of bringing my pain to life in this book. I felt weighed down, and restricted by the uncomfortable pain that I felt when I walked and tried to run back when I was younger.As I got older and I learned and experience the lingering pain, I noticed that my ankle was a key structural part not only to my leg but to my entire character and self. It kept me balanced and secure. In the best way, I tried to demonstrate this in the most concise and clear way possible through the vision of an anchor within the sea.