Animal Crossing's Poetic Horizons

(cont.) In case I still have yet to convince you of Animal Crossing and poetry’s shared heartbeats, let’s take a look at some undeniable proof: real Animal Crossing poetry. Here’s an excerpt from one of my personal favorites, “This Home Defies All Structural Sense” by Kari Flickinger: 

A goth sheep plays

a sad tune from her tulip

player. A sad goat cannot seem

to cover the dirt in the floor.

He tells me the bugs keep climbing

through. I imagine them walking

through his hair at night. He tells me

he dreamt we watched a sunset.

I don’t know how I understand him.

I don’t know how I understand him.

As an occasional Animal Crossing poet myself, I wish I wrote this one. Flickinger’s tone of whimsical confusion puts a humorous spin on the unresolved mysteries of Animal Crossing that are, quite frankly, not pondered enough. At the same time, Flickinger also alludes to the heartwarming nature of Animal Crossing villagers’ personalities; she writes, “He tells me / he dreamt we watched a sunset.” And I think that anyone who plays Animal Crossing will agree that although many quirks of the game are impossible to explain, much of the charm lies in the pockets of warmth hidden throughout. 

No matter how horrible you may feel, your Animal Crossing villagers are always happy to see your face, tell you about their day, or ask where you’ve been. In the words of Katrina from Animal Crossing: New Leaf, they’ll be more than happy to remind you to “remember that bad times...are just times that are bad.” Now, if you’ll excuse me— I have a game to get back to.

p. 3/3