Love Poem Analysis - Mikaela Gatewood

somewhere i have never travelled,gladly beyond
by E.E. Cummings

somewhere i have never travelled,gladly beyond
any experience,your eyes have their silence:
in your most frail gesture are things which enclose me,
or which i cannot touch because they are too near

your slightest look easily will unclose me
though i have closed myself as fingers,
you open always petal by petal myself as Spring opens
(touching skilfully,mysteriously)her first rose

or if your wish be to close me,i and
my life will shut very beautifully ,suddenly,
as when the heart of this flower imagines
the snow carefully everywhere descending;

nothing which we are to perceive in this world equals
the power of your intense fragility:whose texture
compels me with the color of its countries,
rendering death and forever with each breathing

(i do not know what it is about you that closes
and opens;only something in me understands
the voice of your eyes is deeper than all roses)
nobody,not even the rain,has such small hands

While the obvious subject of the poem is how in love the author is, the most important aspect of this poem is the author's claim that his love has insurmountable powers over him, such as the ability to "open" or "close" him emotionally on a whim. It can be seen throughout the poem that the subject has complete control over the author, such that if their "wish to be close me,i and my life will shut very beautifully, suddenly." Despite lacking any command over his emotions, the author seems to be perfectly content with his love having such power over him, and really doesn't seem to question why they have that power in the first place, citing "i do not know what it is about you that closes and opens;only something in me understands the voice of your eyes is deeper than all roses." 
While the poem is a sweet tribute by the author to his love, the overall theme of the piece is slightly problematic. There was a time in my life where I would have loved to have a relationship like the one described in the poem, one where your significant other was madly in love with you and would sacrifice anything just for you. To me, these relationships were like the grand romances I had always seen in the movies, loves that claimed to be the end all be all. But as I've grown older, my idea of love has shifted. I disagree with the idea that it's ok for your significant other to have complete control over you or vice versa. I have come to realize that the healthiest relationships are those comprised of two independent individuals who manage to coexist together. I think it's important to realize that being your own person is the first and most important step in a relationship.