Life is Tough, Cherish It
Dre Hill’s When We Feel We Exist is an intimate collection of poems that slap you in the face with life’s enormity whilst quietly urging you to continue on as you were – on the condition that you notice.
This collection of poetry goes against the grain of Hill’s previous works, which historically evolved around black identity, love, loss and mental health. When We Feel We Exist is Dre Hill’s love letter to life itself. Not so much a collection of poems that flow onto the next, but a mosaic of heartfelt moments lovingly curated by Hill that, when presented side-by-side, symbolize so much more than the sum of their parts.
In this latest work, Hill has pushed away straight lines, dotted i’s and perfect rhymes in favor of writing and presenting poetry that reflects the imperfection of the everyday human experience. Hill presents the mundane, the natural and the cyclical through a lens of honesty, appreciation and will to persist in spite of it all. His poems cover a deliciously broad spectrum of experiences, from ‘dreary, dreadful’ Mondays, the magic of morning’s sunshine, the sweet summer sipping of lemonade and the pure love between humans and their pups. Paradoxically specific yet applicable to experiences you have either forgotten, always pined for or taken for granted – Hill reveals his personal reflections, values and feelings in bid for an authentic, no-frills connection with the reader. Having not known of Dre Hill or his work previously, When We Feel We Exist strikes you with feelings of familiarity and shared experience – provoking that age-old realisation that we really aren’t all that different.
What to Expect—Top Picks
Probably my favourite poem from the collection, ‘Mondays and every day that feels like it’, is daring and honest, provoking the reader with the Monday blues, followed by a relatable yet humbling conclusion that these feelings, often overlooked and pushed down, are to be held close and nourished. Hill holds your hand as he guides you towards those feelings of Sunday scaries and then throws it back in your face, effectively telling you to feel it all and be glad you’re still going, in spite of it all.
‘continue to hate your mondays, / along with every day / that feels like it. / it’s just another way of / saying you’re alive’
In ‘Waiting’ Hill comments on the existential dread brought about by the passage of time. The poem explores how time frames how we perceive and experience life, concluding that the only real way of differentiating yesterday from today or next year is by ‘listening to signs’ and ‘acting on faith’ instead of waiting for life to happen. Hill presents time in a way that personifies it, describing it as a ‘stretching’, ‘circling’, ‘unfurling’ and ‘running’ entity – is time a reflection of us or are we a reflection of time? Here, Hill’s time becomes an active agent of nature, another process to observe and learn from throughout our lives.
Hill’s ‘Sex on the beach’ transports the reader into summer utopia, delivering sunshine and sea salt to all of the five senses before letting you in on the joke (you’ll have to read it if you want to find out what the joke is). Playfully cinematic, ‘Sex on the beach’ pulls you into the sand, sun and salt water as Hill dives, beams and bursts through the poem. Representing the power of a good mai tai, Hill’s play on words and engaging storytelling works beautifully to show the power of strong associations. A poem that is bound to make you giggle and reminisce about summer… Maybe even tempting you to have a mai tai the next time you find yourself at the bar.
‘This is sex on the beach / Sliding through the surf / Gritting sand in your teeth’
Whilst I didn’t relate entirely to every poem in When We Feel We Exist, I am grateful to have had the opportunity and access to Dre Hill’s most personal moments. This, I believe is the premise of human experience and poetry generally, to share, to relate, to learn and to listen. A guidepost for feeling through life rather than feeling around it, Dre Hill’s When We Feel We Exist is a dedicated reminder that you’re not alone in your anger, happiness, frustration or joy – you’re simply alive.
If you would like to read a collection of poetry that is honest, multidimensional and heartfelt, get When We Feel We Exist on the author’s website here.
