‘Fragments of the Past’: Samantha’s Poetic Take On Trauma

Samantha Tamburello is a New York writer. She has written poetry, plays and children books - a very diverse collection. Among her favorite themes of focus, we can cite LGBTQIA+ experiences, as well as trauma and pain - not that they are necessarily related.

Her latest publication is a book of poems, titled ‘Fragments of the Past’ (2021). It essentially focuses on how we can feel after a traumatic experience. For instance, the worldwide pandemic and lockdown that followed. We can all agree that this changed a lot of things in our life and, for some of us, it was a particularly difficult time. We are now only starting to see the beginning of the psychological toll it took on us.

Samantha’s book is a way of expressing and voicing these feelings. It explores pain, fragile memories, flickers of hope. The tone is simple and on point. It is not a metaphysical exploration of what ‘sadness’ means. It is simply a collection of words expressing grief, pain, sadness and the hope it will all change one day. It is a small capsule of what the pandemic felt like.

If it is still too soon for you, and you are struggling to keep up, now is maybe not the best time to read it. But if you want to feel understood, part of something, or are unable to put words on what you are feeling, this book might be just what you need. Despite the loneliness the words express, it is about a common human experience. And it works really well with a hot beverage and the rain hitting your window, if you ask us.

We will leave you with an excerpt of what you can expect;

‘i told you i felt sad,
unable to express the magnitude.
you laughed at me.

i wrote poetry to express my feelings,
you told me to write happier things.
so i leave you with a book about pain.’

Hard not to relate, right? Anyway, take care of yourself and do not forget that we are here for you if you need it. We are, after all, a community.

Header credits: my-lifes-in-color on Tumblr