Under the Lamp Shade

Like “Dear Old Vincent”, “Under the Lamp Shade” was originally written to be accompanied by music. This poem was added to the anthology somewhat retroactively, as I had already written and compiled all of Chapters I-III before I ultimately decided to include it.

Similarly to most of the other poems from Chapter I: Overture, I wrote this during my final months at Drexel. In my final academic term in Philadelphia, I took a songwriting class that was mandated by my Music Industry degree program. “Under the Lamp Shade” was what I submitted for my final project, which is why I was reluctant to include it in the anthology. Creating music had become a sore practice by the time I had left Drexel, as the compulsion to produce induced a level of burnout I had never experienced before.

However, “Under the Lamp Shade” holds a very special place for me. I have not written a full song since submitting this one for a class project, so including it in my anthology was my way of bridging my old self with my new self.