Analysis of The Sprint



My friend's Mum owned a Mini
The paint was a vibrant lime green
So from where I sat by the window
His arrival would always be seen.

And when he and I were done playing
He'd be dragged back in to that car
I'd put on my shoes, and follow them out
With my Mum warning not to go far.

I'd wait for the engine to rumble to life
Stand there with my hands in my pockets
And when they started to drive away
I launched down the road like a rocket.

In that moment, I was the fastest alive
Wind in hair, feet slamming on ground
And when they drove too far to catch up
I'd pause for breath and turn round.

My friend leases a little white car now
And he wears a beard like a man
I'm a little less wild than I was as a child
When my sprints down the road first began

Yet still, when our grown up talks finish
I walk out to that well-worn position
As he gets in his car, I give him a smile
And wait for the rumbling ignition

When he moves, I move along with him
In that moment, I'm the fastest alive
With the wind in my hair, my feet on the ground
I wonder when he learned to drive

When all this change first erupted
Did it float in on some eastern breeze?
If I run fast enough, can I overtake time
For a second, and force it to freeze?

My questions all go on unanswered
As my friend speeds away out of sight
One day, I know I'll speed away too
It's a future I can't hope to fight.

Today, though, I don't think of leaving
Or the places I'll someday soon roam
I catch my breath, and I turn on my heel
And just like before, I run home.


Scheme XAXA BCXC XXXX DEXE XFXF XGXG XDED XHXH XIXI BJXJ
Poetic Form Quatrain  (90%)
Etheree  (23%)
Metre 1111010 01101011 111111010 10101111 011010110 11110111 1111101011 111101111 11101011011 111110110 011101101 111011010 01101101001 10111011 011111111 1111011 1110010111 01101101 101011111101 111101101 1111011110 1111111010 11101111101 0110100010 111110111 0110101001 10101111101 11011111 1111110 111011101 11110111101 101001111 11011110 111101111 111111011 101011111 011111110 10101111 1111011111 01101111
Closest metre Iambic pentameter
Characters 1,533
Words 332
Sentences 9
Stanzas 10
Stanza Lengths 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4, 4
Lines Amount 40
Letters per line (avg) 29
Words per line (avg) 8
Letters per stanza (avg) 117
Words per stanza (avg) 32

About this poem

A reflection on growing up, and how some things never change.

Font size:
 

Written on March 19, 2024

Submitted by memchambers on March 27, 2024

1:43 min read
43

Maisie Chambers

A 19 year old with big dreams and a little cat called Luci. more…

All Maisie Chambers poems | Maisie Chambers Books

1 fan

Discuss this Maisie Chambers poem analysis with the community:

0 Comments

    Citation

    Use the citation below to add this poem analysis to your bibliography:

    Style:MLAChicagoAPA

    "The Sprint" Poetry.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 19 May 2024. <https://www.poetry.com/poem-analysis/184940/the-sprint>.

    Become a member!

    Join our community of poets and poetry lovers to share your work and offer feedback and encouragement to writers all over the world!

    May 2024

    Poetry Contest

    Join our monthly contest for an opportunity to win cash prizes and attain global acclaim for your talent.
    12
    days
    2
    hours
    19
    minutes

    Special Program

    Earn Rewards!

    Unlock exciting rewards such as a free mug and free contest pass by commenting on fellow members' poems today!

    Browse Poetry.com

    Quiz

    Are you a poetry master?

    »
    What American novelist took the title of his novel from a Robert Burns poem?
    A John Steinbeck
    B Thomas Wolfe
    C John Dos Passos
    D Thornton Wilder