Blessing the Boats

The central metaphor of the poem is the boat, ordinarily a vessel for taking people across water. Those familiar with Clifton’s biography, or reading the poem in the context of its original collection, might perceive this as a metaphor for her transition into older age, dealing with illness, and facing medical treatment for breast cancer. However the metaphor is more applicable to all people facing transitions. Although the speaker never specifies what kind of journey she is on, where the boat is taking her, it is clear that the boat is in motion. The poem puts the emphasis on the importance of the journey itself and not the destination. The speaker is writing about the type of journey about which the outcome is not certain. The final line of the poem in which the speaker wishes that “you” are able to sail “through this to that” (Line 13) leaves the change open to interpretation. She doesn’t say move from bad to good, or weakness to strength; “this” and “that” are emotionally equal. Her word choice suggests that the speaker is leaving room for the possibility that the desired outcome of the transition may be different from the result.