Dan Paterson’s poem “Correctives”

Guest post from Graeme Clark about a favourite poet and poem.

I have been reading a new poetry book, Rain by Don Paterson.  An accomplished Jazz musician and a wonderful poet who has recently received the poetry medal as well as other numerous awards.  He has twin sons.  One
had an easy birth, as he says, Russell was fine, ‘He just popped out’,
but Jamie, had a more difficult birth and was left with a slight
disability, a tremor in his left hand.  The poem below is about this but about much much more . . .

Correctives, by Don Paterson

The shudder in my son’s left hand
he cures with one touch from his right,
two fingertips laid feather light
to still his pen. He understands

the whole man must be his own brother
for no man is himself alone;
though some of us have never known
the one hand’s kindness to another.

Don Paterson, Rain (London: Faber and Faber Limited, 2009),16