tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-42941768750476106232024-03-13T12:11:10.266-07:00THE ALCHEMIST'S KITCHENCreative Writing Life and Poetry with Susan Rich Susan Richhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11883699379179129887noreply@blogger.comBlogger1031125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4294176875047610623.post-19441064226346119312023-03-28T11:44:00.000-07:002023-03-28T11:44:09.677-07:00Denise Levertov in Blue Jeans<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwzKlX9SWQY3DyluPbsOm3uelOmT_nwAlf9aYqXJTDMH-sVbJesUxh03x5rd2PdyeiVN3QGb4UmEv34VHjsB9xACUDjYwSBC9VNBmMmhJ__k560fLKsC6O83VT3_hVlvQRffs_rUraiIv1IRRuApfH462wg0ngcDI4bu4wVlXTI75q4xNO1p89FudL/s1238/Screen%20Shot%202023-03-28%20at%2011.41.32%20AM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="740" data-original-width="1238" height="223" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwzKlX9SWQY3DyluPbsOm3uelOmT_nwAlf9aYqXJTDMH-sVbJesUxh03x5rd2PdyeiVN3QGb4UmEv34VHjsB9xACUDjYwSBC9VNBmMmhJ__k560fLKsC6O83VT3_hVlvQRffs_rUraiIv1IRRuApfH462wg0ngcDI4bu4wVlXTI75q4xNO1p89FudL/w374-h223/Screen%20Shot%202023-03-28%20at%2011.41.32%20AM.png" width="374" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p></p><div class="captioned-image-container" style="--tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); 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font-size: 19px; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: start; text-decoration-color: initial; text-decoration-style: initial; text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px;"><pre class="text" style="--tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0; -webkit-font-smoothing: subpixel-antialiased; font-family: var(--font_family_body, var(--font_family_body_preset, "Spectral", serif, -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol")); font-weight: var(--font_weight_body_preset, 400); white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="--tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0;">I didn't have my driver's license yet, but I convinced a friend who did to take me to Brandeis University to hear the poet, </span><a href="https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poets/denise-levertov" rel="" style="--tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0; color: var(--print_on_web_bg_color, var(--color-primary)); text-decoration: underline;">Denise Levertov.</a><span style="--tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0;"> I had read some of her poems and all of her book, </span><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/704915.The_Poet_in_the_World?from_search=true&from_srp=true&qid=JMCQdwuZ9a&rank=1" rel="" style="--tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0; color: var(--print_on_web_bg_color, var(--color-primary)); text-decoration: underline;">The Poet in the World</a><span style="--tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0;">. I can still see that cover. Wait! I still have my copy with my name and the date, 1975, written in my best cursive. Almost 50 years later I am still rereading and underlining this same book.
</span></pre><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgijxYZOK92woWOLGFyINgMpCWNYqBtoHEOwpBdIr2xdidDyQI28WtffO54AHB5WKHR2kdncG6fpKXseo-GW4ql9rfPkAFA6ARn5lUfYuQE3LwsH9cAAC6IsRpZDBQmnfwQXNiIQPuyoWl6hBRoQegJlwHBaHbw8IJL_HgLqQyl81xaBd9pyxwuDsL0/s1408/Screen%20Shot%202023-03-28%20at%2011.43.13%20AM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1408" data-original-width="964" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgijxYZOK92woWOLGFyINgMpCWNYqBtoHEOwpBdIr2xdidDyQI28WtffO54AHB5WKHR2kdncG6fpKXseo-GW4ql9rfPkAFA6ARn5lUfYuQE3LwsH9cAAC6IsRpZDBQmnfwQXNiIQPuyoWl6hBRoQegJlwHBaHbw8IJL_HgLqQyl81xaBd9pyxwuDsL0/s320/Screen%20Shot%202023-03-28%20at%2011.43.13%20AM.png" width="219" /></a></div><br /><pre class="text" style="--tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0; -webkit-font-smoothing: subpixel-antialiased; font-family: var(--font_family_body, var(--font_family_body_preset, "Spectral", serif, -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol")); font-weight: var(--font_weight_body_preset, 400); white-space: pre-wrap;"><div class="preformatted-block" style="--tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0; white-space: normal;"><pre class="text" style="--tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0; -webkit-font-smoothing: subpixel-antialiased; font-family: var(--font_family_body, var(--font_family_body_preset, "Spectral", serif, -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol")); font-weight: var(--font_weight_body_preset, 400); white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="--tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0;">In 1975, I was 15 years old, what did I know? But I bought myself this book($2.45) with my babysitting money and clutched it tightly. I desperately wanted to be a poet in the world; I didn't know how to go about it but this was my deepest desire.
Denise Levertov seemed an actual embodiment of the world I wanted to know. She was born in England, and had grown up there, moved to New York City, her family was originally Jewish ( a long legacy of honored rabbis) but her father had converted to Christianity. Most of all, she was a respected poet with poems and essays that astonished me.
In-person, Levertov was more spirit than flesh. The reading was in a nondescript Brandeis classroom and she sat on a small desk, her legs criss-crossed. And yes, she wore jeans, blue Levis (what else existed?) and a casual shirt. I admit, this (at the time) unheard of attire made a lasting impression.
I didn't understand how a famous poet (she had 8 books already) could be so unassuming. No auditorium, no crowd, just a weekday afternoon gathering of likeminded people. I hope she read what was my favorite of her poems, "The Secret." It seemed written just for me...and every other young woman I knew.
The Secret
Two girls discover
the secret of life
in a sudden line of
poetry.
I who don’t know the
secret wrote
the line. They
told me
(through a third person)
they had found it
but not what it was
not even
what line it was. No doubt
by now, more than a week
later, they have forgotten
the secret,
the line, the name of
the poem. I love them
for finding what
I can’t find,
and for loving me
for the line I wrote,
and for forgetting it
so that
a thousand times, till death
finds them, they may
discover it again, in other
lines
in other
happenings. And for
wanting to know it,
for
assuming there is
such a secret, yes,
for that
most of all.
BY DENISE LEVERTOV
Yes! That time when a line of poetry can change your life one week and then be forgotten the next. But this poem, with its tight line breaks and quatrains, imprinted itself into my poetry DNA. As did this one:
Central Park, Winter, After Sunset
Below the
darkening fading
rose
(to which, straining
upward, black
branches address them-
selves, clowns of alas)
the lights
in multitudinous
windows
are
bells in Java
A sense
of festival
but
somewhere far-off;
sounds from
over water
the frosty field un-
dulates from
Holland to Mexico:
space, or
space as dreams
dissolve it.
This one still feels mysterious; a little less so knowing that Levertov spent time living for short stints in Holland and Mexico. Her line breaks, at the time, were revolutionary as much of her work had to do with her "organic form."
As I grew older I understood that Denise Levertov, Muriel Rukeyser, and Adrienne Rich all went to Vietnam to advocate for peace as citizen poets. And later still, that she was a complicated poet in that she seemed blind to issues of gender and was know to be homophobic (see </span><a href="https://www.wcwonline.org/Women-s-Review-of-Books-Jan/Feb-2014/a-complicated-life" rel="" style="--tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0;">Kate Daniel's review</a><span style="--tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0;"> of two Levertov biographies at the Wellesley Center for Women).
When I taught in the Antioch MFA program in Los Angeles, I'd teach a course called "Courting Your Dead Mentor," which was premised on how much easier it was to love a dead poet who you could study after the fact. Reading the books of poems, the critical essays, and the inevitable biographies was a "cleaner" way to approach the poets we admire. I assumed they were less likely to disappoint us from the afterlife.
How I wanted my poets to be heroic! Yet, Rilke abandoned his family and fell in love with his wife's best friend; Bishop had two lovers who committed suicide (bad luck?) and the male poets who taught me as an undergraduate would exchange one student lover for another on a regular basis.
And yet.
I want to return to that time when poets were not "professionals." "You don't choose poetry, poetry chooses you," is how Linda Pastan phrased it. I want to time travel back to when I believe poets were the best people on the planet. I want to believe that we are as good as our words.
</span></pre></div><div class="subscription-widget-wrap" style="--tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0; margin-bottom: 0px; white-space: normal;"><div class="subscription-widget show-subscribe" style="--tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0; align-items: flex-start; color: var(--print_on_web_bg_color, var(--color-primary)); 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margin-top: var(--size-16); max-width: 384px; width: fit-content;"></div></div></div></pre></div>Susan Richhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08857833162681601245noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4294176875047610623.post-89216371240941129662023-02-26T11:12:00.002-08:002023-02-26T11:12:59.724-08:00Eavan Boland with Mixed Emotions<p> </p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4SMY8lTmQJMVhv4jF64OWgp48Px_C4H8CM_4oqnUUlV4XV7rmPObZDY1u5vlYsKawE0gJKD2l5UyPsjdA1AlWS1LtHxeMIVmGCyCW3FVkH9jfBYDFK14sQZ7rxamUZSzVuWzFzfbz7t35z6cUgOghQ884heKfSac0xKo-zdLjW5k4ElgxRkaHBHO0/s1136/Screen%20Shot%202023-02-26%20at%2011.12.24%20AM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="666" data-original-width="1136" height="188" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4SMY8lTmQJMVhv4jF64OWgp48Px_C4H8CM_4oqnUUlV4XV7rmPObZDY1u5vlYsKawE0gJKD2l5UyPsjdA1AlWS1LtHxeMIVmGCyCW3FVkH9jfBYDFK14sQZ7rxamUZSzVuWzFzfbz7t35z6cUgOghQ884heKfSac0xKo-zdLjW5k4ElgxRkaHBHO0/s320/Screen%20Shot%202023-02-26%20at%2011.12.24%20AM.png" width="320" /></a></div><span style="--tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0; background-color: white; color: #404040; font-family: var(--font_family_body, var(--font_family_body_preset, "Spectral", serif, -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol")); font-size: 19px; font-weight: var(--font_weight_body_preset, 400); white-space: pre-wrap;"><p><span style="--tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0; background-color: white; color: #404040; font-family: var(--font_family_body, var(--font_family_body_preset, "Spectral", serif, -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol")); font-size: 19px; font-weight: var(--font_weight_body_preset, 400); white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p>Did I first "meet" </span><a href="https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poets/eavan-boland" rel="" style="--tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0; background-color: white; font-family: var(--font_family_body, var(--font_family_body_preset, "Spectral", serif, -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol")); font-size: 19px; font-weight: var(--font_weight_body_preset, 400); white-space: pre-wrap;">Eavan Boland</a><span style="--tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0; background-color: white; color: #404040; font-family: var(--font_family_body, var(--font_family_body_preset, "Spectral", serif, -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol")); font-size: 19px; font-weight: var(--font_weight_body_preset, 400); white-space: pre-wrap;"> in 1991? Sometime after my work with the Peace Corps in West Africa and before my job at Amnesty International, I worked in downtown Boston. Boland's reading took place at the </span><a href="https://www.bpl.org/" rel="" style="--tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0; background-color: white; font-family: var(--font_family_body, var(--font_family_body_preset, "Spectral", serif, -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol")); font-size: 19px; font-weight: var(--font_weight_body_preset, 400); white-space: pre-wrap;">Boston Public Library</a><span style="--tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0; background-color: white; color: #404040; font-family: var(--font_family_body, var(--font_family_body_preset, "Spectral", serif, -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol")); font-size: 19px; font-weight: var(--font_weight_body_preset, 400); white-space: pre-wrap;"> in Copley Square. But how did I get there? I think my sister Ruby suggested going although neither of us are really sure. </span><p></p><div class="preformatted-block" style="--tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0; background-color: white; color: #404040; font-family: Spectral, serif, -apple-system, "system-ui", "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 19px;"><pre class="text" style="--tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0; -webkit-font-smoothing: subpixel-antialiased; font-family: var(--font_family_body, var(--font_family_body_preset, "Spectral", serif, -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol")); font-weight: var(--font_weight_body_preset, 400); white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="--tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0;">
What I remember: Inside the library and all the way to the auditorium, security guards and tall men in suits lined the corridors. At a poetry reading? The evening's playbill, handed to us by beaming librarians, announced that the</span><a href="https://www.dfa.ie/irish-consulate/boston/our-role/" rel="" style="--tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0;"> Irish Consul</a><span style="--tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0;"> was going to be introducing Boland. The entire event had the feel of an official state dinner---but without the food and drink.
What we didn't know at the time was that Boland's father had been Ireland's first Ambassador to Great Britain, and later, to the United Nations. That Eavan Boland's classmate was Mary Robinson, President of Ireland. Perhaps this had something to do with the formality (and sellout crowd) of the event or perhaps Bostonians simply adore anything Irish. In either case, I remember feeling every bit the gate crasher.
However, none of this mattered when Eavan Boland took the stage. Actually, she commanded the stage from her military posture to her no nonsense approach to her poems. I believe she might have referred to herself in the third person. It was as if Eavan Boland was performing a lecture on Eavan Boland.
The launch of her book </span><a href="https://www.ebay.com/itm/384491409816?chn=ps&_trkparms=ispr%3D1&amdata=enc%3A1BghLCzUCTMylKv5At9oLpA75&norover=1&mkevt=1&mkrid=711-117182-37290-0&mkcid=2&mkscid=101&itemid=384491409816&targetid=1584571731043&device=c&mktype=&googleloc=9033317&poi=&campaignid=15275224983&mkgroupid=131097072938&rlsatarget=pla-1584571731043&abcId=9300697&merchantid=118856961&gclid=Cj0KCQiAgOefBhDgARIsAMhqXA59G5inWJOjFreeuWd20c5WpQ0yhgbBbJbbL_I92O_6Vz06iwxrk4IaAo6lEALw_wcB" rel="" style="--tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0;">Outside History: Selected Poems 1980-1990</a><span style="--tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0;"> (Norton) must have been the impetus behind the event. Boland was not yet fifty and little known in this country. That would soon change. In the following years, Norton would continue to be Boland's publisher and she'd take-up the position of Director of Creative Writing at Stanford University. But none of this had happened yet.
Instead, I remember a radiance to the poems which I instinctively responded to; sounds that invited me into a world of women where breastfeeding a child in the middle of the night or looking out the window were valued poetic subjects. It's impossible to relay the shock of the new; the radically feminist edge her work represented at the time---despite the upperclass bias, despite the ice cold presentation, these poems were announcing something important and wonderful in poetry.
</span></pre></div><div class="captioned-image-container" style="--tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0; background-color: white; color: #404040; font-family: Spectral, serif, -apple-system, "system-ui", "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 19px; margin: var(--size-32) auto;"><figure style="--tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; 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opacity: 0; position: absolute; right: var(--size-12); top: var(--size-12); transition: all var(--animation-timing-fast) var(--animation-smoothing); width: var(--size-32);"><svg class="lucide lucide-maximize2" fill="none" height="16" stroke-linecap="round" stroke-linejoin="round" stroke-width="2" stroke="#FFFFFF" viewbox="0 0 24 24" width="16" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg"><polyline points="15 3 21 3 21 9"></polyline><polyline points="9 21 3 21 3 15"></polyline><line x1="21" x2="14" y1="3" y2="10"></line><line x1="3" x2="10" y1="21" y2="14"></line></svg></div></div></a></figure></div><div class="preformatted-block" style="--tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0; background-color: white; color: #404040; font-family: Spectral, serif, -apple-system, "system-ui", "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 19px;"><pre class="text" style="--tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0; -webkit-font-smoothing: subpixel-antialiased; font-family: var(--font_family_body, var(--font_family_body_preset, "Spectral", serif, -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol")); font-weight: var(--font_weight_body_preset, 400); white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="--tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0;">To finish reading "Ode to Suburbia," </span><a href="https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/43151/ode-to-suburbia" rel="" style="--tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0;">click here.</a><span style="--tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0;">
And perhaps because she was so outrageously upperclass (with seemingly no political awareness of her position) her work was not ignored. At 23, she was one of the youngest lecturers at Trinity College, Dublin; today she is regarded as "the first major woman poet to write in the Irish tradition," (Gelpi, A, Stanford Magazine).
There seem to be too many Eavan Boland's in the poems and in life for me to consider in such a short space. Dear Reader, I was in love with the early poems, I was not in love with the person. And yet. Perhaps to write herself into the canon meant leaving a certain openness, a certain kind-heartedness behind.
Can we love the poems and not the poet?
Here is an excerpt from "Anna Liffy" written, in part, to the river that runs through Dublin with its 13 tributaries.
*
"Maker of
Places, remembrances,
Narrate such fragments for me:
One body. One spirit.
One place. One name.
The city where I was born.
The river that runs through it.
The nation which eludes me.
Fractions of a life
It has taken me a lifetime
To claim.
I came here in a cold winter.
I had no children. No country.
I did not know the name for my own life."
*
To read all 13 sections of the poem </span><a href="https://ronnowpoetry.com/contents/boland/AnnaLiffey.html" rel="" style="--tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0;">click here</a><span style="--tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0;"> (Boland later took the section markers out---and made many post-publication edits).
****
And in one of the strange/not-so-strange coincidences in life: </span><a href="https://susanrichpoet.substack.com/p/linda-pastan-1932-2003" rel="" style="--tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0;">Linda Pastan</a><span style="--tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0;"> blurbed Boland's first US publication, Outside History Selected Poems (1980-1990) like this:
'Eavan Boland's poems have been appearing here and there, tantalizing us with their rich, evocative music, the wisdom of their "camomile glow." What a pleasure to have them gathered together here where they can reach the large American audience they so clearly deserve."
</span></pre></div><div class="subscription-widget-wrap" style="--tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0; background-color: white; color: #404040; font-family: Spectral, serif, -apple-system, "system-ui", "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"; font-size: 19px; margin-bottom: 0px;"><div class="subscription-widget show-subscribe" style="--tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0; align-items: flex-start; color: var(--print_on_web_bg_color, var(--color-primary)); direction: ltr !important; font-family: var(--font_family_ui, -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"); line-height: 1.5; margin: 24px auto; max-width: 560px; padding: 32px; text-align: center;"><div class="preamble" style="--tw-ring-color: rgb(59 130 246 / 0.5); --tw-ring-offset-color: #fff; --tw-ring-offset-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-ring-offset-width: 0px; --tw-ring-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-rotate: 0; --tw-scale-x: 1; --tw-scale-y: 1; --tw-scroll-snap-strictness: proximity; --tw-shadow-colored: 0 0 #0000; --tw-shadow: 0 0 #0000; --tw-skew-x: 0; --tw-skew-y: 0; --tw-translate-x: 0; --tw-translate-y: 0; align-items: center; display: flex; font-family: var(--font_family_ui, -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, "Segoe UI", Roboto, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif, "Apple Color Emoji", "Segoe UI Emoji", "Segoe UI Symbol"); font-size: 18px; line-height: 22px; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; margin-top: var(--size-16); max-width: 384px; width: fit-content;"></div></div></div>Susan Richhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08857833162681601245noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4294176875047610623.post-8698319981641025932023-02-11T11:01:00.007-08:002023-02-11T11:27:13.533-08:00Elizabeth Bishop: A Couple of Facts and Some Fabulousness<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSyxfgJwGPizSRobRSIrt_38Hjin-Yms_9A7JBW9cjQ892POOA52v4c_TD0sR-xLbEbNB4PwrFl25drnnb7etkO8-3yTmh5F1dA3anZvUBEzp1XSQG0Ouy7ftH36bFAvUUdBb9vniWG0XZKZjo0TLuTYGb-CZVS_-l4pbAusqluZLb1_8JIVNoF1na/s1098/Screen%20Shot%202023-02-07%20at%206.22.00%20PM.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="680" data-original-width="1098" height="396" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSyxfgJwGPizSRobRSIrt_38Hjin-Yms_9A7JBW9cjQ892POOA52v4c_TD0sR-xLbEbNB4PwrFl25drnnb7etkO8-3yTmh5F1dA3anZvUBEzp1XSQG0Ouy7ftH36bFAvUUdBb9vniWG0XZKZjo0TLuTYGb-CZVS_-l4pbAusqluZLb1_8JIVNoF1na/w640-h396/Screen%20Shot%202023-02-07%20at%206.22.00%20PM.png" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p>I just adore this photograph of Elizabeth Bishop in Brazil road-tripping with Minnow, her tuxedo cat.</p><p><br /></p><p>This week was<a href="https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poets/elizabeth-bishop"> Elizabeth Bishop's </a>birthday, she would have been 112 on February 8th. Happy Birthday, Miss Bishop! Although we both lived in the Boston, and our times overlapped a little, I was 10 years old when she died, quite suddenly, at the age of 68 of a cerebral aneurysm in her home on <a href="https://www.apartments.com/lewis-wharf-condominium-boston-ma/g2q3ezy/">Lewis Wharf</a> which was right on the Boston waterfront and newly renovated. Miss Bishop had very refined tastes!</p><p>Here's a story about her I love and that has never been told in print as far as I know. I was saving it for the book on my poetry mentors that I may or may not get around to writing.</p><p>When I first moved to Seattle (where Bishop also lived for a short time) I was invited to teach a one night class at the <a href="https://www.elliottbaybook.com/item/NQQ9I3Qb2ugrbpereLAerw">Elliott Bay Book Company</a>, the most beloved bookstore in my adopted city, then and now. I was young(er) and felt perfectly fine teaching Bishop's work to whomever showed-up. It was very informal, a weekday evening----more an appreciation of some poems than an academic class. One woman in a fur coat, and her friend were clearly retirees and thrilled to be in a small circle discussing poems (there were also University of Washington students clearly there for extra credit).</p><p>As the evening wrapped-up, the woman in fur came up to me and let me know that she, too, came from Boston. "I have a gift for you," she said excitedly, In fact, this woman had a close friend that had lived just underneath Bishop's condominium on Lewis Wharf. Her friend was not exactly a fan of Bishop-the-neighbor and this is why: one night Bishop was planning a dinner party and she came down to knock on her neighbor's door. Bishop wanted to know if she could borrow the neighbor's dog, <span style="font-family: times;">a <span style="background-color: white; color: #202124;">Pekingese. Bishop told the woman's friend that the dog's face looked exactly like a pansy and she wanted her friends to see the striking resemblance.</span></span></p><p>The woman's friend was not the least bit amused. "She didn't invite me to the party, only my dog," the neighbor said. And yes, it was rude and perhaps unkind to want to borrow a neighbor's beloved pet to be a party favor but it also seems so quintessentially Bishop: to carefully observe one thing and see another. The woman in the fur coat smiled broadly and disappeared into the night.</p><p>I believe I've read every book about Elizabeth Bishop's life and work. At this point I know the narrative of her life as if it were my own: the death of her father, followed by her mother's being sent to a psychiatric hospital (never to return), Bishop's dislocation between sets of grandparents, her meeting Marianne Moore just after college, a trip to Brazil and intense allergic reaction to the fruit of a cashew. Her lifelong alcoholism; her many lovers --- including the assistant secretary in the English department at the University of Washington---with whom Bishop moved to San Francisco with....and then disastrously to Brazil...but that's another story.</p><p>Somewhere, in all that reading I came across this little known fact: Elizabeth Bishop always kept a compass in her pocket. (If you know where I read this please, let me know!) I found this fact revelatory. Bishop wrote about her love of binoculars and this seemed to offer a sense of continuity in the image I had formed of her: birdwatcher, traveler, watercolorist --- and brilliant poet. I had tried writing about her before but this "little-known fact" somehow was the portal I needed.</p><p>If you are a poet, and if you love Bishop, there's a good chance you are one; I offer this suggestion: find an obscure fact about a poet you admire and see if the object can open a doorway into a new poem for you.</p><p><br /></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaMUc9alWRwzCRXGMLNO-U3h8Ldrtb3gRs19Ljr3iikrlSdzAJJGvhy678ejnLvKfaNFj01Ef7HAWsKpvxkUe6Y4kyjGYS5zLWYg4Jdth6FSX7IZgBoID1Zad37Uwh1OLZ3KNcMW_4vAlKpAUqsvXcc5OvsaX_D13Gu8dlV5N2gDySMjwZZX6mmPjA/s1122/Screen%20Shot%202023-02-11%20at%2010.15.37%20AM.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1056" data-original-width="1122" height="376" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaMUc9alWRwzCRXGMLNO-U3h8Ldrtb3gRs19Ljr3iikrlSdzAJJGvhy678ejnLvKfaNFj01Ef7HAWsKpvxkUe6Y4kyjGYS5zLWYg4Jdth6FSX7IZgBoID1Zad37Uwh1OLZ3KNcMW_4vAlKpAUqsvXcc5OvsaX_D13Gu8dlV5N2gDySMjwZZX6mmPjA/w400-h376/Screen%20Shot%202023-02-11%20at%2010.15.37%20AM.png" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Thank you to the Alaska Quarterly Review for publication of this poem.</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><p><br /></p>Susan Richhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08857833162681601245noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4294176875047610623.post-27492055982044098872023-02-04T19:27:00.002-08:002023-02-05T10:43:06.404-08:00Linda Pastan (1932 - 2023)<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyr5tCjOdHL-gfM9ba3JhGjPdLOeB9jBH6PmPD_qonyPWRJ1w9VYc8acZFFt-852z09zIDDLYwMGKNGnIbAEZhhOa6tTYN9nRZocPmj_9pEC9gwSI_Azb-XaeA88H8wbygCmfdCCWzUD5wrVWXc_ZQXdIxpa0oIZjBhiFT4qpv3Npxw5N-6Cj2gOIZ/s492/Screen%20Shot%202023-02-04%20at%205.21.31%20PM.png" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0px; text-align: center;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="492" data-original-width="388" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyr5tCjOdHL-gfM9ba3JhGjPdLOeB9jBH6PmPD_qonyPWRJ1w9VYc8acZFFt-852z09zIDDLYwMGKNGnIbAEZhhOa6tTYN9nRZocPmj_9pEC9gwSI_Azb-XaeA88H8wbygCmfdCCWzUD5wrVWXc_ZQXdIxpa0oIZjBhiFT4qpv3Npxw5N-6Cj2gOIZ/s320/Screen%20Shot%202023-02-04%20at%205.21.31%20PM.png" /></a>
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I am still in shock that Linda Pastan has died. I liked knowing she was in the world. We first met when I was sixteen and she visited my high school library to give a poetry reading. <div><br /></div><div>Twenty years later we met again at the Bread Loaf Writers Conference. She was the one that suggested I return to graduate study for an MFA. As she hugged me goodbye at the end of the two weeks, she asked me to keep in touch with her so she could follow my career. I looked over my shoulder sure she must be speaking to someone else. As a creating writing professor now myself, I'm stunned by how much power that one sentence had to change my life. And yes, reader, we did stay in touch. I last saw her when she came out to Seattle with her husband for a reading.</div><div><br /></div><div>Recently, as in a few weeks ago, we had been emailing about her essay,"More of the Sum of Its Parts," which she wrote for an anthology Kelli Russell Agodon and I coedited: <a href="https://www.twosylviaspress.com/store/p78/Pre-Order_for_Demystifying_the_Manuscript_%28price_includes_shipping%29.html">Demystifying the Manuscript: Essays and Interviews on Creating a Book of Poems</a> (Two Sylvias Press, 2023). </div><div><br /></div><div> Two weeks ago I wrote a blogpost highlighting Linda's work because I didn't believe her poems were as well known as they deserved. I wonder if her death will finally amplify the importance of her 50 years of publishing and bring an important spotlight to her work. </div><div><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJnvjNcvsrO8H98l9IjbGgHDZyElsVJdzcxB5s9iTvM8szpauirP54dxyKlkQ5p6AmUYQJe5vILdlyybajBIkc-yNXuMFVYVEJfUureRCjsBRBbhh39nW2mJInDVVwSYjKt6L2TelYUnQHJT71flTOsHTzdrqZiycc7NZGzEdl-SFXGyI15abiGpWj/s1112/Screen%20Shot%202023-02-04%20at%207.00.07%20PM.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="652" data-original-width="1112" height="188" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJnvjNcvsrO8H98l9IjbGgHDZyElsVJdzcxB5s9iTvM8szpauirP54dxyKlkQ5p6AmUYQJe5vILdlyybajBIkc-yNXuMFVYVEJfUureRCjsBRBbhh39nW2mJInDVVwSYjKt6L2TelYUnQHJT71flTOsHTzdrqZiycc7NZGzEdl-SFXGyI15abiGpWj/w320-h188/Screen%20Shot%202023-02-04%20at%207.00.07%20PM.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Linda Pastan reading from Not an Elegy this past November at 90 years old.</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><div><br /></div><div> Since her death, I've done a deep dive into her 15 books and watched her on several YouTube videos. There's two videos I keep playing over and over. The first is a thirty year old archival piece where <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ueCd4CvY1II">Lucille Clifton</a> interviews Linda Pastan for a local television show. Such sweetness. The understated way they talk about their work, barely looking at each other or at the camera. Pastan mostly looks down at her shoes. However, it's clear that the women have a strong mutual respect for each other. The interview ends with Pastan saying that Clifton is responsible for one of the best days of her life. Now you<i> have</i> to go watch it. </div><div><br /></div><div>I shared two Pastan poems with my Highline College students on Thursday and tried to convey her sly genius to them. Or maybe I simply wanted them to fall in love with her work as I have. They responded most strongly to her poem <a href="https://wordsfortheyear.com/2020/04/05/instruction-by-linda-pastan/">"Instruction,"</a> with its extended metaphor of pain taking the form of a newborn infant. A terrific example of making an abstraction concrete. I also shared "Ethics" with them ---- the first of her poems I remember studying.</div><div><br /></div><div>I wonder what it means to write one superb poem after another but not to win the Pulitzer or become Poet Laureate, to not be given the gold ring by the powers that be? Pastan did not take multiple lovers (as far as know) or commit suicide; she did not behave badly. I remember telling a professor in my graduate program that she had been an important influence and I could sense his dismissiveness. I've since heard that same story from several women poets who wanted to study her work. Why not Eavan Boland was weirdly the response.</div><div><br /></div><div>I am hopeful that someone organizes a book of critical essays on Pastan's work or perhaps is already at work on a biography. Perhaps that will be me...</div>Susan Richhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08857833162681601245noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4294176875047610623.post-14943105565797407262023-01-21T14:30:00.008-08:002023-01-21T14:30:54.926-08:00Linda Pastan: My First Living Poet in the Flesh<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhN5GKTkKrxb07Lg91Sr1nuvZyUcocS9xSu-Env_W8J3-Mp7gLp8yT7ORjayytX40h9n1hVEq5l02m3vgYeX8_lJRrExjdU9sd5Wa5EU9rN90DPc7r7kL0xJ6OdKg7OzSfR-kRFj2tP7myqKYZc94Jc1Etdj0426K1FwXBU1GNgUVtvzXYKtHRfkYTp/s514/Screen%20Shot%202023-01-21%20at%2011.07.16%20AM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="474" data-original-width="514" height="295" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhN5GKTkKrxb07Lg91Sr1nuvZyUcocS9xSu-Env_W8J3-Mp7gLp8yT7ORjayytX40h9n1hVEq5l02m3vgYeX8_lJRrExjdU9sd5Wa5EU9rN90DPc7r7kL0xJ6OdKg7OzSfR-kRFj2tP7myqKYZc94Jc1Etdj0426K1FwXBU1GNgUVtvzXYKtHRfkYTp/s320/Screen%20Shot%202023-01-21%20at%2011.07.16%20AM.png" width="320" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p>Scene: the Brookline High School Library, many plastic chairs set out in rows for this special event.</p><p>It was 1973 or 1974 and there was a poet in the library! Could you be alive and still be a poet? I remember thinking that she looked like she could be someone's mother (she was) and I'll admit, I was a little disappointed by this realization.</p><p>That is, until she started reading her poems. </p><p>I remember being amazed at how clear each poem appeared in the air, as in: shimmering with layers of nuance. <a href="https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poets/linda-pastan">Linda Pastan</a> made it look so easy! I was sixteen years old and just beginning to consider poetry I might write (sadly, over my desire to be a novelist).</p><p>I met Linda Pastan again at t<span style="color: #343434; font-family: "Poets Electra", Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: inherit; white-space: pre-wrap;">he <a href="https://www.middlebury.edu/writers-conferences/">Breadloaf Writers Conference</a> in 1993. Twenty years later I was still flirting with a life in poetry. She was the poet whom I asked to study with and she was the poet that I was lucky enough to meet one on one. </span></p><p><span style="color: #343434; font-family: "Poets Electra", Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: inherit; white-space: pre-wrap;">She also changed my life.But that's another story...</span></p><p>What I want to focus on for a moment is Pastan's incredible body of work. She has been publishing for over 50 years! When I look back at her poems, I see themes of the female body, of social anxiety, of grief, of a deep humor that are still alive and well today. However; Pastan was writing about "routine mammograms" and "an old woman" and "a visit to the gynecologist's" before these were cool subjects, before Sharon Olds....</p><p>I wonder why Pastan's poems are not as well known today as they once were. I keep coming back to her own self-deprecating humor and lack of need for a spotlight. Yet, when Linda Pastan came out to Seattle for the <a href="https://lectures.org/event/linda-pastan/">Seattle Arts and Lectures Series</a> in 2015, already then in her early 80's, the theater was filed-up with love for this poet. If you are not familiar with her work, both the Academy of American and the <a href="https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poets/linda-pastan">Poetry Foundation</a> can get you started. Pastan published Almost an Elegy last year, after 50+ years publishing, and over a dozen books, she still sounds pitch perfect to me, still writes with fresh energy and unflinching honesty. </p><p><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1zxihJONQ_e-og79qpDqxVPjOIUYA2-_DCaL2PkawgppIrhfvgOqkQx4OF9cBfv7Fq8Bl1fjj1UjKBxcCS-9qs_tdUmXZ1GLyT3Z4c86rNnWOW5f3qI1bzQRochLimgCCHr_M7vqBiADJ5Daus9-d4DEEOOsa6Wz2PQSaj11ss2g9614A_4rn7fqA/s774/Screen%20Shot%202023-01-21%20at%202.23.29%20PM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="774" data-original-width="506" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1zxihJONQ_e-og79qpDqxVPjOIUYA2-_DCaL2PkawgppIrhfvgOqkQx4OF9cBfv7Fq8Bl1fjj1UjKBxcCS-9qs_tdUmXZ1GLyT3Z4c86rNnWOW5f3qI1bzQRochLimgCCHr_M7vqBiADJ5Daus9-d4DEEOOsa6Wz2PQSaj11ss2g9614A_4rn7fqA/w261-h400/Screen%20Shot%202023-01-21%20at%202.23.29%20PM.png" width="261" /></a></div><div class="card-header pb-2 pt-3 bg-white" data-v-6ee59ef1="" style="background-color: white; border-bottom: 1px solid transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #343434; font-family: "Founders Grotesk", -apple-system, "system-ui", "Segoe UI", Roboto, "Helvetica Neue", Arial, sans-serif; margin-bottom: 0px; padding-bottom: 0.6rem !important; padding-left: 3.25rem; padding-right: 1.25rem; padding-top: 1.2rem !important;"><div data-v-6ee59ef1="" style="box-sizing: border-box;"><div class="d-flex poem__title mb-1" data-v-6ee59ef1="" style="-webkit-box-direction: normal; -webkit-box-orient: horizontal; -webkit-box-pack: justify; box-sizing: border-box; display: flex !important; flex-direction: row; justify-content: space-between; margin-bottom: 0.3rem !important;"><h4 style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: "Poets Electra Roman No 2"; font-style: italic; font-weight: 500; line-height: 3rem; margin-bottom: 0.75rem; margin-top: 0px; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></h4><h4 style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: "Poets Electra Roman No 2"; font-style: italic; font-weight: 500; line-height: 3rem; margin-bottom: 0.75rem; margin-top: 0px; text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></h4><h4 style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: "Poets Electra Roman No 2"; font-style: italic; font-weight: 500; line-height: 3rem; margin-bottom: 0.75rem; margin-top: 0px; text-align: center;"><br /></h4></div><h4 style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: large; font-weight: normal;">Traveling Light</span></h4></div></div><div class="card-body" data-v-6ee59ef1="" style="-webkit-box-flex: 1; box-sizing: border-box; color: #343434; flex: 1 1 auto; font-family: "Poets Electra", Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 1.25rem; line-height: 1.5; padding: 1.25rem;"><div class="poem__actions vertical dark" data-v-1e4a20ad="" data-v-6ee59ef1="" style="-webkit-box-flex: 1; box-sizing: border-box; flex-grow: 1; left: -3rem; margin-bottom: 2.4rem; position: absolute; width: 33px;"><ul class="poem__actions__social d-flex flex-wrap" data-v-1e4a20ad="" style="-webkit-box-direction: normal; -webkit-box-orient: vertical; -webkit-box-pack: end; box-sizing: border-box; display: flex !important; flex-direction: column; flex-wrap: wrap !important; justify-content: flex-end; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"><li class="pr-2" data-v-1e4a20ad="" style="box-sizing: border-box; list-style: none; padding-right: 0.6rem !important;"><a class="" data-v-1e4a20ad="" href="https://facebook.com/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fpoets.org%2Fpoem%2Ftraveling-light&t=Traveling%20Light" rel="noopener" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #007ab3; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank"><img data-v-1e4a20ad="" src="https://poets.org/social/facebook.svg" style="border-style: none; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 6px; vertical-align: middle;" /></a></li><li class="pr-2" data-v-1e4a20ad="" style="box-sizing: border-box; list-style: none; padding-right: 0.6rem !important;"><a class="" data-v-1e4a20ad="" href="https://twitter.com/share?text=Traveling%20Light&url=https%3A%2F%2Fpoets.org%2Fpoem%2Ftraveling-light" rel="noopener" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #007ab3; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank"><img data-v-1e4a20ad="" src="https://poets.org/social/twitter.svg" style="border-style: none; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 6px; vertical-align: middle;" /></a></li><li class="pr-2" data-v-1e4a20ad="" style="box-sizing: border-box; list-style: none; padding-right: 0.6rem !important;"><a class="" data-v-1e4a20ad="" href="https://tumblr.com/share/link?url=https%3A%2F%2Fpoets.org%2Fpoem%2Ftraveling-light&name=Traveling%20Light" rel="noopener" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #007ab3; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank"><img data-v-1e4a20ad="" src="https://poets.org/social/tumblr.svg" style="border-style: none; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 6px; vertical-align: middle;" /></a></li><li class="pr-2" data-v-1e4a20ad="" style="box-sizing: border-box; list-style: none; padding-right: 0.6rem !important;"><a class="" data-v-1e4a20ad="" href="https://poets.org/print/poem/bd88a613-9a67-4b9e-aea3-82bbb43911ad" rel="noopener" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #007ab3; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank"><img data-v-1e4a20ad="" src="https://poets.org/social/print.svg" style="border-style: none; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 6px; vertical-align: middle;" /></a></li><li class="pr-2" data-v-1e4a20ad="" style="box-sizing: border-box; list-style: none; padding-right: 0.6rem !important;"><a class="" data-v-1e4a20ad="" href="https://poets.org/poem/traveling-light#" role="button" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #007ab3; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_self"><img data-v-1e4a20ad="" src="https://poets.org/social/embed.svg" style="border-style: none; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 6px; vertical-align: middle;" /></a></li><li class="pr-2" data-v-1e4a20ad="" style="box-sizing: border-box; list-style: none; padding-right: 0.6rem !important;"><a class="" data-v-1e4a20ad="" href="https://poets.org/poem/traveling-light#" role="button" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #007ab3; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_self"><img data-v-1e4a20ad="" src="https://poets.org/social/collection.svg" style="border-style: none; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 6px; vertical-align: middle;" /></a></li></ul><div data-v-1e4a20ad="" style="box-sizing: border-box;"></div><div data-v-1e4a20ad="" style="box-sizing: border-box;"></div></div><div class="poem__body px-md-4 font-serif" data-v-6ee59ef1="" style="box-sizing: border-box; font-size: 1.1rem; padding-left: 0.5rem !important; padding-right: 0.5rem !important;"><pre style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: "Poets Electra", Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: inherit; margin-bottom: 1rem; margin-top: 0px; overflow: auto; white-space: pre-wrap;">I'm only leaving you
for a handful of day
but it feels as though
I'll be gone forever—
the way the door closes
behind me with such solidity,
the way my suitcase
carries everything
I'd need for an eternity
of traveling light.
I've left my hotel number
on your desk, instructions
about the dog
and heating dinner. But
like the weather front
they warn is on its way
with its switchblades
of wind and ice,
our lives have minds
of their own.</pre><pre style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: "Poets Electra", Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: inherit; margin-bottom: 1rem; margin-top: 0px; overflow: auto; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></pre><pre style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: "Poets Electra", Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: inherit; margin-bottom: 1rem; margin-top: 0px; overflow: auto; white-space: pre-wrap;">Here is another one I am re-reading again and again, today.</pre></div></div><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: "Source Sans Pro", sans-serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; text-align: left; text-rendering: optimizelegibility; width: 720px;"><br /></p><h4 style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: "Source Sans Pro", sans-serif; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; text-align: left; text-rendering: optimizelegibility; width: 720px;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: normal; line-height: inherit;"><span style="font-size: large;">all i want to say</span></span></h4><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: "Source Sans Pro", sans-serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; text-align: right; text-rendering: optimizelegibility; width: 720px;"><em style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; vertical-align: inherit;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; vertical-align: inherit;">A painter can say whatever he wants with fruits</span></span><br style="box-sizing: border-box;" /></em><em style="box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; vertical-align: inherit;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; vertical-align: inherit;">or flowers, or even with clouds.</span></span><br style="box-sizing: border-box;" /></em><span style="box-sizing: border-box; vertical-align: inherit;">Edouard Manet</span></p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: "Source Sans Pro", sans-serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; text-rendering: optimizelegibility; width: 720px;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; vertical-align: inherit;">When I hand you this bowl</span><br style="box-sizing: border-box;" /><span style="box-sizing: border-box; vertical-align: inherit;">of apples, I mean:</span><br style="box-sizing: border-box;" /><span style="box-sizing: border-box; vertical-align: inherit;">here are some pink spheres of</span><br style="box-sizing: border-box;" /><span style="box-sizing: border-box; vertical-align: inherit;">love, or of lust – emblems</span><br style="box-sizing: border-box;" /><span style="box-sizing: border-box; vertical-align: inherit;">of all those moments after Eden</span><br style="box-sizing: border-box;" /><span style="box-sizing: border-box; vertical-align: inherit;">in which a hint of the forbidden was</span><br style="box-sizing: border-box;" /><span style="box-sizing: border-box; vertical-align: inherit;">like the seasoning of that first apple?</span><br style="box-sizing: border-box;" /><span style="box-sizing: border-box; vertical-align: inherit;">Or I just want to say: Forgive me,</span><br style="box-sizing: border-box;" /><span style="box-sizing: border-box; vertical-align: inherit;">I've been busy all day, and the only thing</span><br style="box-sizing: border-box;" /><span style="box-sizing: border-box; vertical-align: inherit;">for dessert is a piece of fruit.</span></p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: "Source Sans Pro", sans-serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; text-rendering: optimizelegibility; width: 720px;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; vertical-align: inherit;">And when you plucked</span><br style="box-sizing: border-box;" /><span style="box-sizing: border-box; vertical-align: inherit;">a single flower from the fading bush outside</span><br style="box-sizing: border-box;" /><span style="box-sizing: border-box; vertical-align: inherit;">our window,</span><br style="box-sizing: border-box;" /><span style="box-sizing: border-box; vertical-align: inherit;">were you telling me that I am somehow</span><br style="box-sizing: border-box;" /><span style="box-sizing: border-box; vertical-align: inherit;">like a flower, or worthy of flowers?</span><br style="box-sizing: border-box;" /><span style="box-sizing: border-box; vertical-align: inherit;">Were you telling me</span><br style="box-sizing: border-box;" /><span style="box-sizing: border-box; vertical-align: inherit;">something flowery,</span><br style="box-sizing: border-box;" /><span style="box-sizing: border-box; vertical-align: inherit;">or nothing more: here's the last rose</span><br style="box-sizing: border-box;" /><span style="box-sizing: border-box; vertical-align: inherit;">of November,</span><br style="box-sizing: border-box;" /><span style="box-sizing: border-box; vertical-align: inherit;">please put it in water?</span></p><p style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #333333; font-family: "Source Sans Pro", sans-serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.5; margin: 0px 0px 1.25rem; padding: 0px; text-rendering: optimizelegibility; width: 720px;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box; vertical-align: inherit;">But as for the clouds,</span><br style="box-sizing: border-box;" /><span style="box-sizing: border-box; vertical-align: inherit;">as for those.....To continue reading<a href="https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poetrymagazine/browse?contentId=41663"> go to Poetry Foundation</a></span></p>Susan Richhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08857833162681601245noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4294176875047610623.post-26242872397952910922023-01-14T12:53:00.006-08:002023-01-14T12:56:43.212-08:00Thinking about Charles Simic<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjm8GlO7FbmkNfVyrBtBufwkJuF5KakrIhbLOT-GUxzfXiA1hyUKiI4aa9msTQiquzNIWBPZHsWNORyGEslsM2RNMCPRpfFZ7BQrL_n-zCU6KuOkSaAUiZ8n2OYYAU2br2EFKTRanrv7thuvPqUaIh7aAy4bJ0ul2XPA4uDn6d11TvZ4SNzyeA5jylG/s736/Screen%20Shot%202023-01-14%20at%2011.43.40%20AM.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="688" data-original-width="736" height="598" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjm8GlO7FbmkNfVyrBtBufwkJuF5KakrIhbLOT-GUxzfXiA1hyUKiI4aa9msTQiquzNIWBPZHsWNORyGEslsM2RNMCPRpfFZ7BQrL_n-zCU6KuOkSaAUiZ8n2OYYAU2br2EFKTRanrv7thuvPqUaIh7aAy4bJ0ul2XPA4uDn6d11TvZ4SNzyeA5jylG/w640-h598/Screen%20Shot%202023-01-14%20at%2011.43.40%20AM.png" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p>I first met Charles Simic through his book, <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Dime-Store-Alchemy-Joseph-Cornell-Classics/dp/1590174860/ref=sr_1_1?crid=XDJ0C7Y4COZM&keywords=dime-store+alchemy&qid=1673726323&sprefix=dime-store+alchemy%2Caps%2C129&sr=8-1">Dime-Store Alchemy</a>, that gorgeous, gorgeous cover which lived in the window of the<a href="https://www.grolierpoetrybookshop.org/"> Grolier Poetry Bookshop</a>. I walked by that cover every morning on my way to work. It was the early 90's and poetry was just beginning to be part of my world, before I'd decided to do an MFA, before I'd published my first book, before I could see a life in poetry. And though I didn't "understand" this book, I was obsessed.</p><p><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYfD9JNe6lUpSsG8VoqqF4VfFelKUktMSYVKSDU39lxCKfFW8LP8QB5xUm8ySKwjhZmeG0GVQfAepkTI4dQFnOUasgLirg1WBXPvrG1hhx0_UPFPaTBA3ouhY3ziZlPBRECgy3dK5M8hR90G9dyx2ZT4e48FewyVQrzc2T6nVwMo0aOjVTdBsU8SBF/s1178/Screen%20Shot%202023-01-14%20at%2011.52.55%20AM.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1178" data-original-width="796" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYfD9JNe6lUpSsG8VoqqF4VfFelKUktMSYVKSDU39lxCKfFW8LP8QB5xUm8ySKwjhZmeG0GVQfAepkTI4dQFnOUasgLirg1WBXPvrG1hhx0_UPFPaTBA3ouhY3ziZlPBRECgy3dK5M8hR90G9dyx2ZT4e48FewyVQrzc2T6nVwMo0aOjVTdBsU8SBF/w432-h640/Screen%20Shot%202023-01-14%20at%2011.52.55%20AM.png" width="432" /></a></div><br /><p>I have bought this book several times as it seems to always be disappearing. In the early 90's, I had never seen a book with this color on the cover, I'd never read a prose poem, or heard of Joseph Cornell. This all seems impossible looking back, but this book was a unicorn. There was no other American surrealist that I had ever heard of and the ekphrastic tradition of poets finding inspiration in the visual arts, was, if not exactly frowned on, it certainly was not in vogue. I read and reread this book. I still do.</p><p>A friend of mine had a husband who had studied with Simic at the University of New Hampshire and adored him. This week's piece in The Yale Review by Megan O'Rourke gives a moving homage to her mentor, friend, and dinner companion. (You can find it <a href="https://yalereview.org/article/charles-simic-obituary-tribute-meghan-orourke">here</a>)</p><p>Oh, yes, and of course, Pulitzer Prize winning poet. I just found this video of Simic reading his poem <a href="https://www.google.com/search?q=poems+charlies+simic+stone&sxsrf=AJOqlzWE_rBuWkXxDNhZLakh-eatkB40lg%3A1673727139241&ei=owzDY-qsDq_G0PEP-6au8AU&ved=0ahUKEwiqite878f8AhUvIzQIHXuTC14Q4dUDCBA&uact=5&oq=poems+charlies+simic+stone&gs_lcp=Cgxnd3Mtd2l6LXNlcnAQAzIHCCEQoAEQCjIHCCEQoAEQCjIHCCEQoAEQCjIFCCEQqwIyBQghEKsCMgUIIRCrAjIICCEQFhAeEB06CggAEEcQ1gQQsAM6CAgAEAgQHhANOgUIABCGAzoHCCMQsAIQJzoICAAQBRAeEA06BggAEBYQHkoECEEYAEoECEYYAFCBAVj_LGDPLmgBcAF4AIABXogBrQWSAQIxMJgBAKABAcgBCMABAQ&sclient=gws-wiz-serp#fpstate=ive&vld=cid:481fa47a,vid:XODm-0K9TK4">"Stone"</a> and for a moment, he comes alive again. </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdXV_lGqlU8F_FcPHvFoXStRy7YYtN4BXNZ9yBeCLVVQ_3IWMcgDT-nF_qsRideH7_fpGH-c0iU1pfKzBC6QwIT4gelEujp4mxvB3G_KfoHWEvPxpE_pQqKws9EGrPjtdEF3Q75B4f2I1V7eQUv6zLtOiFuNC_84dhCZuOyQVkwDQ-tl6MaMalEn6I/s1392/Screen%20Shot%202023-01-14%20at%2012.26.39%20PM.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="996" data-original-width="1392" height="458" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdXV_lGqlU8F_FcPHvFoXStRy7YYtN4BXNZ9yBeCLVVQ_3IWMcgDT-nF_qsRideH7_fpGH-c0iU1pfKzBC6QwIT4gelEujp4mxvB3G_KfoHWEvPxpE_pQqKws9EGrPjtdEF3Q75B4f2I1V7eQUv6zLtOiFuNC_84dhCZuOyQVkwDQ-tl6MaMalEn6I/w640-h458/Screen%20Shot%202023-01-14%20at%2012.26.39%20PM.png" width="640" /></a></div><p>The great poets I grew up on: Elizabeth Bishop, Denise Levertov, Sylvia Plath, Adrienne Rich, Anne Sexton, Seamus Heaney, W.S. Merwin, Derek Walcott, and now, Charles Simic, are all gone now. The people, not the poems. </p><p>I did not know Charlie Simic the man who loved dessert enough to order all the desserts on the menu for a table of four. I didn't even know the term "surrealist" when I first encountered his work. I have been an admirer from afar.</p><p><a href="https://poets.org/poem/library">"In the Library,"</a> is another of my favorite of his poems but I am discovering more favorites all the time.</p><p>For example, this haiku:</p><p><br /></p><p style="text-align: center;"><b>My Secret Identity</b></p><p style="text-align: center;">The room is empty</p><p style="text-align: center;">And the window is open</p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><b>Solitude</b></p><p>There now, where the first crumb</p><p>Falls from the table</p><p>You think no one hears it.</p><p>As it hits the floor,</p><p><br /></p><p>But somewhere already</p><p>The ants are putting on </p><p>their quaker hats</p><p>And setting out to visit you.</p><p><br /></p><p>If you don't know the work of Charles Simic, checkout his work. Buy one of his many books. If you do know his work, give yourself the gift of getting reacquainted.</p><p><br /></p>Susan Richhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08857833162681601245noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4294176875047610623.post-53155668182853293592023-01-07T22:23:00.007-08:002023-01-14T16:40:39.648-08:00Easy and Quick Tips to Help Your Fellow Poet / Writer<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUSfZOPTJRZbdUsTLRFyE2ULPzzmPHjm6HVtI0RKzhC3EWQ8MNscrCdxe8zYbCX76Fq7W8mJuUm1mijIgdY65E-8ItO8SxQ-xDlcQdQEErib7tMezKbfECvcP4Kj2Th-scOxRwJUm468f94Q3ZwvFfaRTDFqEJAsPU10d4ATaAmgKt1wK5cfidoxUG/s1262/Screen%20Shot%202023-01-07%20at%209.31.22%20PM.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="770" data-original-width="1262" height="390" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUSfZOPTJRZbdUsTLRFyE2ULPzzmPHjm6HVtI0RKzhC3EWQ8MNscrCdxe8zYbCX76Fq7W8mJuUm1mijIgdY65E-8ItO8SxQ-xDlcQdQEErib7tMezKbfECvcP4Kj2Th-scOxRwJUm468f94Q3ZwvFfaRTDFqEJAsPU10d4ATaAmgKt1wK5cfidoxUG/w640-h390/Screen%20Shot%202023-01-07%20at%209.31.22%20PM.png" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p>I like to look at the positive side of life. President Obama said one of the things he learned early on the campaign travel is that most Americans are good. Let's extend that out to all people, globally. If we get the chance to do the right thing (and it's free and with little effort) we will do it. </p><p>So I'd like to start the new year right by being a better literary citizen. Here are the practices I want to do regularly and I invite you to join me!</p><p>1<b>. Review your friends' poetry books</b> --- and if you're in the mood --- include a photo as that will increase the chances that others will read it. Here's a review I did of my friend <b>Kelli Russell Agodon's</b> book, <a href="https://www.amazon.com/gp/customer-reviews/R3E0B4C95T3SBU/ref=cm_cr_dp_d_rvw_ttl?ie=UTF8&ASIN=1556596154">Dialogue with Rising Tides. </a></p><p>2. f you don't want to give attention to Amazon, (you can purchase the book anywhere) you can <b>leave a review on <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/friend/requests?ref=nav_my_friends">GoodReads </a>or on the site of your local independent bookstore.</b> You can also leave a 5 star rating if you don't want to write a review. You need to set-up an account here, but it's free and a great way to keep track of your favorite authors. Actually, you can leave reviews at more than one place. The more reviews a book has, the more the magic <span style="font-family: inherit;">algorithm will assure that book be shown to more people.</span></p><p>3<b>. If you have a blog or a newsletter</b>, (or a friend that likes to read!) you can mention your friend's new book. It's true that books are mostly sold by word of mouth. If you recommend a book of poems, even friends who don't often read poetry might buy a copy or take the book out of the local library. Even better, <b><u>ask your local library to buy a copy!</u></b> They will!</p><p><b>4. A personally signed copy of a book of poems is a great gift.</b> Okay, this does cost money but you were going to buy your friend a birthday present anyway. Buying a signed copy of your friend's book to give to another friend is definitely a win-win situation.</p><p><b>5. Share a quick poem as a post on social media!</b> If you are reading this, chances are you have a FB, Instagram, Ticktock, or Twitter account. Maybe all 4! It's super easy (and free) to post one of the poems from your friend's book. Just take a photo of the page (one page poems or shorter work best). I know I am always happiest when I start my day by reading a new poem. </p><p><b>Why not join me?</b> These acts of kindness will make you feel all warm and fuzzy as well. I sincerely believe that as writers we raise ourselves up as we raise each other up. Of course we all would like more readers, more supporters, but we also feel best when we are helping others---especially the writers we know and love.</p><p><br /></p>Susan Richhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08857833162681601245noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4294176875047610623.post-45091074812119602452023-01-06T11:10:00.003-08:002023-01-06T11:25:47.454-08:00After 9 years, it is really here: DEMYSTIFYING THE MANUSCRIPT<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiA2YqaXokO4yQeVAiMvS037r3vxBhFR1rjTIxng0myMpf_5rabhXIQ_baKgWRpDK01BoW2ZwouZEp_2Y0klhq1alTSYSt856XfaC63jeuSWjACyxjyjBR77JCfkpsKOQiu_x50W1rQ71v7vyf5fb3m-kPhvYYTLec07idRcW-k7M8DKryfVG-RAmIU/s1214/Screen%20Shot%202023-01-04%20at%201.09.41%20PM.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1214" data-original-width="808" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiA2YqaXokO4yQeVAiMvS037r3vxBhFR1rjTIxng0myMpf_5rabhXIQ_baKgWRpDK01BoW2ZwouZEp_2Y0klhq1alTSYSt856XfaC63jeuSWjACyxjyjBR77JCfkpsKOQiu_x50W1rQ71v7vyf5fb3m-kPhvYYTLec07idRcW-k7M8DKryfVG-RAmIU/w426-h640/Screen%20Shot%202023-01-04%20at%201.09.41%20PM.png" width="426" /></a></div><br /><p></p><div>It might not be polite to say so, but I just can't stop looking. The color, the hand, and the story it implies makes me ridiculously happy. Why this cover for this book? Creating a book of poems means knocking on a magical door---one where a beautiful hand can guide you through to the other side. You begin with a pile of poems and through the different chapters and interviews here, you learn a variety of ways to order that pile of chaos into a streamlined book with themes, braids, sections....there's many good choices. </div><div><br /></div><div>A friend mentioned that for her, the cover image evokes questions: where does the poem live? Which poems live next door? What does the house of poetry feel like? Inside this book (with a door knocker from Turkey) is a chapter on choosing cover art. <a href="https://www.agodon.com/index.html">Kelli Russell Agodon</a> and I created a <a href="https://www.pinterest.com/">Pinterest </a>page to keep track of our favorite images in one place. Now it seems this blue door was inevitable all along.</div><div><br /></div><div>The idea for the book began on a road trip from the Oregon Coast back-up to Seattle. We were returning from the <a href="http://sylviabeachhotel.com/">Sylvia Beach Hote</a>l where <a href="http://poetsonthecoast.weebly.com/">Poets on the Coast</a> was held in the early years. Flash forward nine years and between us we have written over a dozen books including anthologies and individual collections of poems. We've also asked a wide selection of our favorite poets to join us which includes over 36 living poets. Our deep hope is to have the book out for AWP but the<a href="https://www.twosylviaspress.com/booksproducts.html"> Two Sylvias Press</a> offices are awaiting final confirmation. In the meantime, it is just now available<a href="https://www.twosylviaspress.com/store/p78/Pre-Order_for_Demystifying_the_Manuscript_%28price_includes_shipping%29.html"> here</a> for pre-order.</div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div>Susan Richhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08857833162681601245noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4294176875047610623.post-37572749938338977932023-01-03T20:38:00.008-08:002023-01-04T12:06:01.398-08:00My New Year's Resolution is to Write Poems and...<blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><p style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1398" data-original-width="1050" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisOSJe5F2PqeGd_Ajw_a6mw_3maS0_X0iCjUEbxg2hDxv0WJIfvs_hwNPi0Iu_9cDmoJ7AVkntmQtWmhjgdqx-0Hr-EAR_nMlq2SGIHxZyRbUGk3u7dDA6pr7mJvPM8eOKLq-9tI8Yh-owJGSE-RKUj3w0vatTZX9dkldGlA0xk1J_sbTfall1zLBt/w301-h400/Screen%20Shot%202023-01-03%20at%2012.46.44%20PM.png" width="301" /></p></blockquote></div></blockquote></blockquote></blockquote></blockquote></blockquote>
I love this time of year. Anything is possible and perhaps, even probable. There are all the poems in the world to write, and all the poems on the computer to send out to journals. This season of beginning fills me with optimism. And so, after an epidemic, <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Gallery-Postcards-Maps-Selected-Poems/dp/1915022134/ref=sr_1_1?crid=3LANEKLAY6SX5&keywords=gallery+of+postcards+and+maps+susan+rich&qid=1672807355&sprefix=gallery+of+postcards%2Caps%2C133&sr=8-1" target="_blank">a new book</a>, and some epic times of wonder, I'm here again.
Over the past few years, I've tried to balance more poetry writing with more poetry community.I know I need a vibrant and diverse group of poets around me. <div><br /></div><div>The classes I teach and the <a href="http://poetsonthecoast.weebly.com/register.html" target="_blank">Poets on the Coast</a> retreat I run are both for the poets that come to the events, but they also feed me.
Something unexplicible happens when we write in community---as if the air we breathe is filled with even more poetry than usual. Somehow as a group, we are more than a sum of our parts. Or maybe it's something even simpler, when we share a safe and creative space, the poems come in new shapes and forms. We surprise ourselves.
Register for <a href="http://poetsonthecoast.weebly.com/" target="_blank">Poets on the Coast</a> now to reserve your place. Come write with us!
</div>Susan Richhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08857833162681601245noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4294176875047610623.post-73211538053266895262022-03-11T10:42:00.001-08:002022-03-11T10:42:14.393-08:00"Risking It" with Kelli Russell Agodon and Gallery of Postcards and Maps!<div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgNDHzYvNNFio_IcY4rT9ZvTakZt7GsvOXxGq_dlbBWqOZk6MNTUMbwhR5-8xkdWlEqQDRHrmGQbuMNIIZVTUWAf91kxHEAO3aqOMmqXjpfyvFqL-vNzPkevlKAkAwOeHCZvqNH8hGBHviVloqpcVD_qRI723kTEsvkPoj8JO5dRywjU8LHUt_hWNJt=s792" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0; text-align: center; "><img alt="" border="0" height="400" data-original-height="792" data-original-width="612" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgNDHzYvNNFio_IcY4rT9ZvTakZt7GsvOXxGq_dlbBWqOZk6MNTUMbwhR5-8xkdWlEqQDRHrmGQbuMNIIZVTUWAf91kxHEAO3aqOMmqXjpfyvFqL-vNzPkevlKAkAwOeHCZvqNH8hGBHviVloqpcVD_qRI723kTEsvkPoj8JO5dRywjU8LHUt_hWNJt=s400"/></a></div>Susan Richhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08857833162681601245noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4294176875047610623.post-43834152425781103452022-01-03T23:23:00.005-08:002022-01-04T12:31:27.129-08:00How Do You Celebrate Groundhog's Day?<p> <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEj2mu7WutP_ID2Tj5NhjcxLE5wiEWsk4hUtr2miAs9mTeviICktQAlffH3E8ACfENyF7IaAH829U3mM1enHgcG3iFUpYf7_-M1tffIW2WO-P4w9XiZlrJZwCZ-Yy2i_HttyKAM1ji-zZrkGbnt1PARvCkLzYk8f9b80DIq6wnLLdGHfrmWxN5EZoHIl=s640" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="520" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEj2mu7WutP_ID2Tj5NhjcxLE5wiEWsk4hUtr2miAs9mTeviICktQAlffH3E8ACfENyF7IaAH829U3mM1enHgcG3iFUpYf7_-M1tffIW2WO-P4w9XiZlrJZwCZ-Yy2i_HttyKAM1ji-zZrkGbnt1PARvCkLzYk8f9b80DIq6wnLLdGHfrmWxN5EZoHIl=w325-h400" width="325" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Writing Outside the Norm with January Gill O'Neil<br /><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div></td></tr></tbody></table>Can I say again how thrilled I am to be teaching with<a href="https://poets.org/poet/january-gill-oneil" target="_blank"> January Gill O'Neil</a> from <b>10:00 am to 2:00 pm on Saturday, February 5th.</b> Yes! It's a<a href="http://poetsonthecoast.weebly.com/" target="_blank"> Poets on the Coast </a>tradition to come together on the Saturday closest to Groundhog's Day for a day of writing and community. For years, we did this in downtown Seattle, one year we went to the Two Sylvias' Offices in Kingston, and now we are coast to coast on Zoom! January and I have been friends for over a decade but this is the first class we will have ever taught together.</p><p>I also want to give a shout out to the incredible artist and all around amazing person who created this poster, <b>Angelia Miranda.</b> Angelia is a multi-talented poet, graphic designer, and in-line skater! (and these are just her side hustles.) Thank you, Angelia for being an integral part of the Poets on the Coast team.</p><p><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #2a2a2a; font-size: large;"><b>DESCRIPTION:</b></span></span></p><p><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #2a2a2a; font-size: 16px;">For a poem to feel alive, to feel worth the time we spend crafting it, risk is necessary in shape, subject matter, and language. But to bring risk into our work we must write from beyond the periphery. In this workshop, we will investigate ways to write outside the norm using a wide variety of new prompts including collage, form, braiding and pojacks.<br /><br />Included in the day will be a new poem packet with work from Ellen Bass, Jericho Brown, Warsan Shire, and several other poets who use nons forms to their own end. You will leave the workshop with 6-8 new starts, but more importantly, you will leave with a toolbox of new ways to approach your own work. </span><br style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-size: 16px;" /><br style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-size: 16px;" /><br style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-size: 16px;" /><strong style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-size: 16px;"><span style="color: #2a2a2a; font-size: large;">PRAISE FOR POTC CLASSES:</span></strong><br style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-size: 16px;" /><br style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-size: 16px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #24678d; font-size: 16px;">"I always love "Generating New Poems," for both the prompts and the energy of the poems being born before my eyes."<br /> ~ Debby Bacharach, author of <em style="position: relative;">Shake and Tremor</em>, Grayson Books.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-size: 16px;" /><br style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-size: 16px;" /><br style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-size: 16px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #24678d; font-size: 16px;">"Your workshop, "Generating New Poems," encouraged me to think about poetry differently."<br /> ~ Wanda Herndon, poet</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #666666; font-size: 16px;" /></span></p><p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white; font-size: medium;"><b>To sign-up to join us, for more information or to register <a href="http://poetsonthecoast.weebly.com/" target="_blank">click here</a>. Registration closes on Ground Hog Day!</b></span></span></p><div><div class="stjgntxs ni8dbmo4 l82x9zwi uo3d90p7 h905i5nu monazrh9" data-visualcompletion="ignore-dynamic" style="border-radius: 0px 0px 8px 8px; overflow: hidden;"><div><div><div><div class="l9j0dhe7" style="position: relative;"><div class="bp9cbjyn m9osqain j83agx80 jq4qci2q bkfpd7mw a3bd9o3v kvgmc6g5 wkznzc2l oygrvhab dhix69tm jktsbyx5 rz4wbd8a osnr6wyh a8nywdso s1tcr66n" style="align-items: center; border-bottom: 1px solid var(--divider); color: var(--secondary-text); display: flex; font-family: inherit; font-size: 0.9375rem; justify-content: flex-end; line-height: 1.3333; margin: 0px 16px; padding: 10px 0px;"><br /></div><div class="bp9cbjyn m9osqain j83agx80 jq4qci2q bkfpd7mw a3bd9o3v kvgmc6g5 wkznzc2l oygrvhab dhix69tm jktsbyx5 rz4wbd8a osnr6wyh a8nywdso s1tcr66n" style="align-items: center; border-bottom: 1px solid var(--divider); color: var(--secondary-text); display: flex; font-family: inherit; font-size: 0.9375rem; justify-content: flex-end; line-height: 1.3333; margin: 0px 16px; padding: 10px 0px;"><br /></div></div></div></div></div></div></div>Susan Richhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08857833162681601245noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4294176875047610623.post-27411493649934733392022-01-02T16:11:00.007-08:002022-01-02T16:25:36.346-08:00Happy New Year, One Day Late<div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><div style="text-align: center;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1506" data-original-width="1238" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEh7dA-s-YW8cuju0WxPP5F1NXtVkRQCqvYsS2Z9g9ayFNei20vMo-1OeornobNom6oA2S2kKugErF0b2jpsmv6iLFy3NSx1DeLSY4wwWUDnMHNC9PF98OgAA3EndORWr-5v4yNNrocIcKmu5oqXqsfR27shJ40TKwCdkgDv5zo4R9okPVpQCxgoJRnn=s320" /></div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEh7dA-s-YW8cuju0WxPP5F1NXtVkRQCqvYsS2Z9g9ayFNei20vMo-1OeornobNom6oA2S2kKugErF0b2jpsmv6iLFy3NSx1DeLSY4wwWUDnMHNC9PF98OgAA3EndORWr-5v4yNNrocIcKmu5oqXqsfR27shJ40TKwCdkgDv5zo4R9okPVpQCxgoJRnn=s1506" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0px; text-align: center;">Alki Beach, West Seattle, WA</a><span style="color: black;">My hope for you is that 2022 is full of clear skies, Olympic Mountains, and large flairs of creativity. One can hope, right? And there is new scientific evidence that we have some sway in how we perceive our year, our lives. Perhaps it's as simple as "you are what you eat" tweaked to "you are what you believe." I'm no psychologist but you can check out what<a href="https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/living-forward/202009/how-your-thinking-creates-your-reality" target="_blank"> Psychology Today</a> mentions here.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Today I am grateful for the poetry books of others as well as for the wonder of my own deep revision. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">This afternoon, I'm halfway through<a href="http://twosylviaspress.com/disappearing-queen.html"> Disappearing Queen</a> by Gail Martin, winner of the Wilder Prize by <a href="http://twosylviaspress.com/disappearing-queen.html">Two Sylvias Press</a> and I don't want it to end. The different narrative threads include the life of bees, the life of an older American woman, and the accrued losses implicit in both.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">So far, my favorite poem is "Matriarch" which begins with an epigraph from the Sylvia Plath poem "Stings" and then takes six lines from Plath to rework throughout Martin's own work; a Plath line for each Martin stanza. The poem reads as a sort of nons form sestina, Elizabeth Bishop-esque in its exactitude and directness.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjL9AibdCcO0OTilcvIGFfXlDB-u7NGvBr25qxAGn0gD30jKfDoAOqPfuQga7C2gDEMv4ZamVbc2zV3eBhDR-9V6GPw1r5_BxdZcxDZmmhfU0QGqBC7wZV675E-7cLTUWiV9xe1Xc13jgPKkw4ULinUmTpjpVoeGHjGJ6sszT4OYE_6npaF_P6pbarx=s688" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="688" data-original-width="454" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjL9AibdCcO0OTilcvIGFfXlDB-u7NGvBr25qxAGn0gD30jKfDoAOqPfuQga7C2gDEMv4ZamVbc2zV3eBhDR-9V6GPw1r5_BxdZcxDZmmhfU0QGqBC7wZV675E-7cLTUWiV9xe1Xc13jgPKkw4ULinUmTpjpVoeGHjGJ6sszT4OYE_6npaF_P6pbarx=s320" width="211" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Disappearing Queen by Gail Martin</td></tr></tbody></table><i><br /></i><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><i><br /></i></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><i>A tooth is just one kind of ache. O body. You are a fickle clock. Your gods fade and wane and we deal and dicker with them as if they are street vendors... </i>from Crave</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">I love this attempt to bargain with the aging process, with the body that insists on surprises. The poems accrue in their wisdom and in their varied forms of knowing. Gail Martin is a poet I look forward to hearing from again.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">And somehow, the day is almost gone and my poem "architectural digest, reboot" is nowhere near done; neither is "The Pickle Barrel at Morse's". Maybe they never will be. When working on new poems there is simply joy at attempting something new; a deep feeling of gratitude for the creation.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">May your creativity flair in unexpected and exciting ways; may your creativity swerve sideways or even take a small rest. I feel so lucky to be living this life as a writer and a secret painter; to be creating community and also to love the solitude. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;">Wishing you a better and a more beautiful 2022 than you can imagine. </div>
Susan Richhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08857833162681601245noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4294176875047610623.post-76932518054373373682021-12-25T14:18:00.012-08:002021-12-26T16:13:52.059-08:00Wishing You a Holiday of Light, Love, Laughter (and Poetry)<p> <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEi6ilPbbDGlAlfgCF3UoSqGZmjvild8QmW24BKaxJwV7F8AcMIfPtL8KF05Enuk6ss1_-OAgK2LNtnOUxxItRzDDrxk4Jm_LLuORk1FC3IVylLeardL-93JmKVZGci_uBtrlmmETtCQAPA0dKS21sxZxQczAK0aIinrTLe6ZI2brJg4QKPwdCPsARaP=s1296" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1296" data-original-width="1008" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEi6ilPbbDGlAlfgCF3UoSqGZmjvild8QmW24BKaxJwV7F8AcMIfPtL8KF05Enuk6ss1_-OAgK2LNtnOUxxItRzDDrxk4Jm_LLuORk1FC3IVylLeardL-93JmKVZGci_uBtrlmmETtCQAPA0dKS21sxZxQczAK0aIinrTLe6ZI2brJg4QKPwdCPsARaP=s320" width="249" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Forthcoming from Salmon Poetry, April</td></tr></tbody></table><br /></p><p>Hello you! Thanks for not giving up on this space. It's been more than a minute since my last posting. Why?
Well, just a quick recap: one near death experience, one global pandemic, and a <a href="https://www.poetsusanrich.com/" target="_blank">new website</a> with a confusing (to me) blogging application. But I miss the sense of talking poetry with the larger world so here I am again hoping to reconnect.</p><p>Most recently, I've been reading Singing at High Altitude by <a href="https://www.jennifermarkell.com/about-jennifer" target="_blank">Jennifer Markell</a>. </p>
I've been enjoying this book not only for its strong narrative tensions but also for the way Markell moves easily between the natural world, the therapeutic world, and her own childhood. Here is a poem that I think does this particuliarly well:
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgyX3Fx0fPglg2qV3mFIDskpjAQyKh6VJjWxXOtqjK003sZ-lpiEeti-yATFj-kFJ-8jlEL4_uo6iUXMxsBZHEAlIItqCSO12Fhj0cWhteB1_m3PW-pkGibCNlHF6TOx3NpvR4NHz2fWTBul527v8apmPioApqIIdUYGmfB3TxZp8DyAc4u0ZXu1jiJ=s788" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0; text-align: center; "><img alt="" border="0" width="320" data-original-height="618" data-original-width="788" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgyX3Fx0fPglg2qV3mFIDskpjAQyKh6VJjWxXOtqjK003sZ-lpiEeti-yATFj-kFJ-8jlEL4_uo6iUXMxsBZHEAlIItqCSO12Fhj0cWhteB1_m3PW-pkGibCNlHF6TOx3NpvR4NHz2fWTBul527v8apmPioApqIIdUYGmfB3TxZp8DyAc4u0ZXu1jiJ=s320"/></a></div>
The understated humor, the renactment of this time out of time, reminds me of Keats or Stevens. This is high lyric at its best. The poem feels incredibly contemporary but upon a second and then a third reading, it becomes timeless; a reckoning with the mind, or even the soul.
Almost all of the poems in<b> Singing at High Altitude</b> are succint, employing only four or five stanzas to do their work.
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjoApmu4WFBwtgZhyO0RCzMm__XjfNCloaawfxtugrZg5Y-K1M06diOTntNpjx2EypD-Z9Joc--2rqGxSoANrbo5KRzq52U5dYplt_vlpaNQF0bzkC3enfwLN_tjkKB_3m1wouldaw05sLRCrWcXRJIvNromASvRs0aHZKCrQet2XuIva5cumQKOC60=s1162" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0; text-align: center; "><img alt="" border="0" height="320" data-original-height="1162" data-original-width="788" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjoApmu4WFBwtgZhyO0RCzMm__XjfNCloaawfxtugrZg5Y-K1M06diOTntNpjx2EypD-Z9Joc--2rqGxSoANrbo5KRzq52U5dYplt_vlpaNQF0bzkC3enfwLN_tjkKB_3m1wouldaw05sLRCrWcXRJIvNromASvRs0aHZKCrQet2XuIva5cumQKOC60=s320"/></a></div>
It is this braiding of the human world with "Amber and Cobalt," or milkweed and ash, that I'm most drawn to. The voice under these poems brings me new angles for looking at the world and is always trustworthy, always more than fair. I find myself returning to the poems in <a href="https://www.jennifermarkell.com/purchase-singing-at-high-altitude" target="_blank">Singing at High Altitude </a>that on a first look seem deceptively simple but upon a closer read are urging us to not only look more closely at the world around us, but these poems are also asking us to love it.
You will want your own copy of Singing at High Altitude, published by Main Street Rag, 2021.
Susan Richhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08857833162681601245noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4294176875047610623.post-4891463696393425382020-10-03T13:35:00.004-07:002020-10-03T13:40:54.716-07:00Tova Beck-Friedman and Susan Rich Interview: Pregnant with the Dead<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/kVj_b4chFEY" width="320" youtube-src-id="kVj_b4chFEY"></iframe></div><br /><p></p><p>You may remember the cine-poem that award winning filmmaker, <a href="https://tbfstudio.com/portfolio-category/films/">Tova Beck-Friedman</a> and I collaborated on at the beginning of 2020. I did the voiceover of my poem, Pregnant with the Dead," here in Seattle at the amazing <a href="http://www.jackstraw.org/">Jack Straw Productions</a> the first week of January. This was my first experience being in a film. Well, my voice was there! And what a lovely way to begin an unlovely year.</p><p>Since then, the poem and the film have taken on a life of their own. Less than a week before we were supposed to be featured in the Visible Voices Poetry Festival we were unceremoniously booted from the line-up with no explanation. If you want the history of that debacle, check out the article in the <a href="https://seattlereviewofbooks.com/notes/2020/04/22/seattle-poet-susan-rich-s-work-was-pulled-from-an-online-festival-for-being-offensive-she-s-not-keeping-quiet-about-it/">Seattle Review of Books</a> which provides an excellent summary of its twists and turns.</p><p>Since April, our film has traveled to / will travel into many different film festivals including, most recently, the <a href="https://poetryfilmtage.de/">International Poetry Film Festival of Thuringia</a> (Germany) and the <a href="https://www.newmediafilmfestival.com/">New Media Film</a> Festival in Los Angeles for June 2021. One of the things I love most about being a poet is never knowing where my words might land. For my poem, "Pregnant with the Dead," the landings have alchemized into celluloid. </p><p>I couldn't be happier. To read the poem with line breaks and stanzas (!) go to<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JIhCaKqfFnA"> the notes section </a>of the film which you can access here.</p><p><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/JIhCaKqfFnA" width="320" youtube-src-id="JIhCaKqfFnA"></iframe></div><br /><p><br /></p>Susan Richhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08857833162681601245noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4294176875047610623.post-73298083313484776112020-09-26T11:40:00.001-07:002020-09-26T11:40:19.839-07:00Spend the Day with Me - Saturday, October 10th 10 AM - 2 PM<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-DU3dbjmL210/X2-II-Vc0zI/AAAAAAAABJY/YmJd2EPQZmQ33gAoajZPMws8HS7i6ocFQCLcBGAsYHQ/s800/ZOOM%2BClass%2BPOTC.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="800" data-original-width="600" height="405" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-DU3dbjmL210/X2-II-Vc0zI/AAAAAAAABJY/YmJd2EPQZmQ33gAoajZPMws8HS7i6ocFQCLcBGAsYHQ/w304-h405/ZOOM%2BClass%2BPOTC.png" width="304" /></a></div><p><br /></p>No matter where you are on the planet, you can come, too! I don't know about you, but I am working to fill my weekends with different things as we head into the fall and winter. I've signed up for a Zoom class<p></p><p>and am beginning a writers retreat (more on that later!). Writing with friends and with strangers is an exciting alchemy. I believe that the muse likes community. I've had so many poets tell me that what we do as a group is impossible to recreate by themselves. It's not just the prompts we create (new prompts each time) but the energy (stay with me) that happens when a group of dedicated poets come together. </p><p>If that's not enough, we also will provide a list of curated journals where my co-presenter and dear friend, <a href="https://www.agodon.com/index.html">Kelli Russell Agodon</a> and I have been impressed with the kindness and professionalism of the editorial team. </p><p>We have two prices; the first is $20 less than the second one. The catch? None. Just sign-up by October 1st and you save. Here is the link to<a href="http://poetsonthecoast.weebly.com/classes.html"> more information</a> and our website. </p>Susan Richhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08857833162681601245noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4294176875047610623.post-50488212336434365772020-07-12T11:34:00.005-07:002023-01-06T17:25:20.433-08:00Happy Birthday! The Wild and Wonderful World of Word Lists!<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-c5-cltDnXXM/XwtVtn3IYgI/AAAAAAAABEc/UwhRQu8jZKoGg2kCc9XIf1xFMo1V0_naQCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/Screen%2BShot%2B2020-07-06%2Bat%2B2.29.06%2BPM.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="666" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-c5-cltDnXXM/XwtVtn3IYgI/AAAAAAAABEc/UwhRQu8jZKoGg2kCc9XIf1xFMo1V0_naQCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/Screen%2BShot%2B2020-07-06%2Bat%2B2.29.06%2BPM.png" width="236" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Frida Kahlo born on July 6, 1907</td></tr>
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<br /><div>I am teaching a Richard Hugo House class on, you guessed it, The Wild and Wonderful World of Words Lists. These lists become my best friend when I am writing; they are useful in dozens of different ways.<br />
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I'm including right here an easy lesson on using Word Lists. Enjoy!<br />
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<b><span style="font-size: 16pt;">The Wild (and Wonderful) World of Word Lists<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: 14pt;">Why use a word list?</span></b><o:p></o:p></div>
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To jump yourself out of your default vocabulary (globe, blue, world, cream).<o:p></o:p></div>
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To create an extended metaphor --- all words about cars or dogs or water.<o:p></o:p></div>
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To make your writing more surreal.<o:p></o:p></div>
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To focus closely on the language of one subject (anatomy, photography, cats).<o:p></o:p></div>
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When writing on a specific subject such as film (jump cut, cant angle, montage, establishing shot).<o:p></o:p></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: 14pt;">Ways to Construct a Word List<o:p></o:p></span></b><br />
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<span style="font-size: 14pt;">Take the last word of every line of a poem and write towards that word.</span></div>
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Keep a basket of words on your desk, in your living room, even the bathroom!<o:p></o:p></div>
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Notecards (keep notecards with a dozen unconnected words and one directive).<o:p></o:p></div>
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Look over the spines on your bookshelf, what catches your eye?<o:p></o:p></div>
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Look at the titles of books in a bookshop; Pegasus is posting photos of their shelves.<o:p></o:p></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 12pt; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt;">Use the words from a favorite poem and put them through the Cut-up Machine!</div>
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<b><span style="font-size: 14pt;">Other Sources:<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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Your subconscious<o:p></o:p></div>
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Your friends/classmates /students subconscious<o:p></o:p></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: 14pt;">Online Resources:<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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John Muir’s Lost Words Dictionary <a href="https://www.johnmuirtrust.org/assets/000/002/830/LOST_WORDS_Explorers-Guide_pages_original.pdf"><span style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman" , serif;">https://www.johnmuirtrust.org/assets/000/002/830/LOST_WORDS_Explorers-Guide_pages_original.pdf</span></a><o:p></o:p></div>
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Random generated lists: <a href="https://www.randomlists.com/random-verbs"><span style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman" , serif;">https://www.randomlists.com/random-verbs</span></a><b><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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Thesaurus: <a href="https://www.thesaurus.com/browse/beautiful"><span style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman" , serif;">https://www.thesaurus.com/browse/beautiful</span></a><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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</div>Susan Richhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08857833162681601245noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4294176875047610623.post-72429966149579590532020-05-23T13:21:00.001-07:002020-05-24T15:57:05.630-07:00Recommended for Everyone! Bone Road by Geraldine Mills and Asking the Form by Hilary Salick<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
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Simply put: this is an extraordinary book of leave taking and home coming. </div>
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The lyric poems are collaged into a moving narrative of one family's journey. And while<b> <a href="https://press.syr.edu/supressbooks/3132/bone-road/">Bone Road</a></b><a href="https://press.syr.edu/supressbooks/3132/bone-road/"> </a>documents the story of <a href="http://geraldinemillswriter.blogspot.com/">Geraldine Mills'</a> great-grandparents leaving the west coast of Ireland in 1882-84 with assistance of the Tuke Fund, this also can't help but echo peoples around the globe who are forced to leave home due to famine, war, and poverty. </div>
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The twist in this history is that the <a href="https://press.syr.edu/supressbooks/3132/bone-road/">family returns to Ireland</a>. The faux gold of New England does not hold the family. They return to Ireland just as impoverished as when they left. What is that pull called home? <i> Untumble the walls of the house / Uprise its lintel from the overgrowth /...Unbreak the heart. </i></div>
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<i>Note: Geraldine Mills was scheduled to give a reading in Seattle for Highline College and Elliott Bay Books in April 2020. We have postponed her visit to post pandemic. </i></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Asking the Form by Hilary Sallick</td></tr>
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Hilary Sallick is a poet whom I've been reading since the 1990's so I'm thrilled to hold this book in my hands. This is Hilary Sallick's first full length collection, <b><a href="https://www.spdbooks.org/Products/9781950063185/asking-the-form.aspx">Asking the Form</a>,</b> published just a couple of months ago. Rumor has it that the launch party (just shy of the pandemic) was a fabulous, well attended affair. The kind we can only dream about attending now. How I wish I had been there in Somerville that night.<br />
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The poems here are filled with piano notes and guinea pigs (one guinea pig, actually); the birth of children and the quietude of the mind. Her work reminds me of Jane Hirshfield and Jane Kenyon combined --- if they lived in Somerville, Massachusetts. This is the kind of book that comes most alive in the solitary moments that we have right now. And if you don't have quiet hours with your cats, this book will make you feel that you do.<br />
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<br />Susan Richhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08857833162681601245noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4294176875047610623.post-19594969413137027562020-05-10T14:50:00.000-07:002020-05-10T23:39:54.656-07:00Say What ~ Two New Poems Published in Two Days? It Must Be the Apocalypse <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-xD-3-sJxykQ/XrhzaLAwVKI/AAAAAAAABAg/JJvpk5awrUIvx51PliwDNMoff7oAnt8FgCEwYBhgL/s1600/Screen%2BShot%2B2020-05-10%2Bat%2B2.34.07%2BPM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="984" data-original-width="636" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-xD-3-sJxykQ/XrhzaLAwVKI/AAAAAAAABAg/JJvpk5awrUIvx51PliwDNMoff7oAnt8FgCEwYBhgL/s320/Screen%2BShot%2B2020-05-10%2Bat%2B2.34.07%2BPM.png" width="206" /></a></div>
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<span style="text-align: start;">I'm afraid I am giving away the limits of my tech abilities here but it seemed important to share these two relatively new poems if only to document our strange times. Both pieces were written in the first month of the pandemic that today shows little signs of abating. For very different reasons, both poems remain close to my heart. 'Song at the End of the Mind' can be found in the Cambridge (MA) based journal, <a href="https://www.pangyrus.com/poetry/song-at-the-end-of-the-mind/">Pangyrus</a>---a new word meaning the internal continent of the mind.</span><br />
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<a href="https://seattlereviewofbooks.com/notes/2020/05/06/coronavirus-poem-4-in-the-fourth-week-of-the-new-era/" style="text-align: start;">The Seattle Review of Books</a><span style="text-align: start;"> team of editors, Paul Constant and Martin McClellan have been a dream to work with. Thank you to all the editors for bringing my work into the world especially in these most surreal times.</span></div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-gcH25HH2p0g/Xrhxg_Ce2oI/AAAAAAAABAU/dDW-wm-Q3fg-gSdVXAVkswH4Xv6T3BH5wCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/Screen%2BShot%2B2020-05-10%2Bat%2B2.22.54%2BPM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1530" data-original-width="1346" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-gcH25HH2p0g/Xrhxg_Ce2oI/AAAAAAAABAU/dDW-wm-Q3fg-gSdVXAVkswH4Xv6T3BH5wCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/Screen%2BShot%2B2020-05-10%2Bat%2B2.22.54%2BPM.png" width="281" /></a></div>
to continue reading <a href="https://seattlereviewofbooks.com/notes/2020/05/06/coronavirus-poem-4-in-the-fourth-week-of-the-new-era/">click here</a><br />
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<br />Susan Richhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08857833162681601245noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4294176875047610623.post-69067382716608001092020-04-20T08:38:00.004-07:002020-04-22T12:38:13.315-07:00Stop Censoring Your Artists: Open Letter to the Visible Poetry Project and Fractured Atlas<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="background-color: white; font-size: 16px;"><span style="color: blue; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>"Every year there are films the board ultimately chooses not to release." </b></span></span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; font-size: 16px;"><span style="color: blue; font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b> </b> Sofia Bannister, Managing Director, <i>Visible Poetry Project</i></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">If I had known that my poems would be subject to board scrutiny, I would not have submitted my work to the <a href="https://www.visiblepoetryproject.com/about-1#the-team">Visible Poetry Project</a>. I am still trying to wrap my head around the fact that Tova Beck-Friedman's film was deemed so controversial as to be banned from the VPP Festival. The banning of this film is what compels me to write to you today. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>To the Board Members of the <a href="https://www.visiblepoetryproject.com/about-1#about-2">Visible Poetry Project</a> and <a href="https://www.fracturedatlas.org/">Fractured Atlas, </a>(Names on VPP website include only: <a href="https://www.visiblepoetryproject.com/about-1#the-team">Michelle Cheripka</a> and <a href="https://www.visiblepoetryproject.com/about-1#the-team">Alex Max</a>).</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">In this particular historical moment when a deadly pandemic is ravishing the globe, killing people daily at an unprecedented rate, I find it particularly shameful to be censoring artists, in this case, artists who produce political work. Especially now.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>In several emails I have implored you to reconsider your position</b>. Trust me, it gives me no pleasure to write this letter. I do so in hope that you might reconsider your censorship practices in future. Otherwise, I want to alert poets and filmmakers that your organization is not acting in good faith. Nowhere in your material can i find language stating that you will pull commissioned work from the festival.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">In September 2019, when I submitted my poems to you, I understood (from all the materials on your website) that if my work were selected, I would have the opportunity to be paired with a filmmaker who would create a film based on one of my poems. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>Success! I was excited to learn I had been selected by a panel of esteemed poets and that my work would be passed onto the chosen filmmakers (who had also been vetted by VPP).</b> I became even more pleased when I was told that the filmmaker, <b><a href="https://tbfstudio.com/">Tova Beck-Friedman</a> had selected my poem,"Pregnant with the Dead" as the inspiration for her film.</b> Given that this poem is meant to honor my ancestors and its subject is intergenerational haunting, I was especially thrilled. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>"30 Poets / 30 Filmmakers / 30 Days,"</b> is the tag line for your organization. I was intrigued with the elegance of releasing one film per day during National Poetry Month. What a great idea! In none of the emails I received nor in the Film Resource Packet was there any mention that the final product would be subject to the scrutiny and to the oversight of your organization. What art organization controls the art the artists produce? My work has been honored with many grants and awards, no organization has ever reneged on their agreement, until now.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">It never occurred to me that the art you commission would be subject to censorship. The panel of poets and filmmakers you chose acted in proxy for the organization. <b>My poem was chosen, I talked with my filmmaker and we were off and running. </b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">You supplied us with a wonderful producer for our project, Mia Shelton, who I believe works for VPP. Mia kept us on track with permissions and budgets; she also screened an early cut of the film. <b>Her comments state that the interplay of dancer and archival footage was very effective.</b> This was during production, and so Tova continued her work. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>It wasn't until March 31st that we learned something was very wrong. I received an email from Sofia letting me know that "Pregnant with the Dead" had been cut from the line-up and would not be shown</b> as part of the VPP Festival scheduled to open the next day. The message that was sent to the filmmaker and myself that night was polite but obtuse. Here is an excerpt.</span><br />
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<span style="background-color: #cccccc;"><span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">I am so sorry to tell you that we are unable to release <i>Pregnant With The Dead </i>this April. In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, we've had to restructure our programming for National Poetry Month, <span style="color: black;">in an effort to bring the community of Visible Poetry Project together during this time of crisis. </span>I know this news is very disappointing. Please know that we too are disappointed not to be releasing your film, and we hope you will understand our decision to hold onto your film until a later date. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">I reread the email several times wondering what this note could mean. At first, I thought the festival had been delayed but this was an on-line film festival; why would it be affected by COVID-19? When I visited the VPP website the festival was still there. Finally, I understood that our film being cut "in response to COVID-19," was simply using the pandemic as an excuse. There has been no further mention of finding anywhere else to screen the film. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b><br /></b></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>If the film had featured images of death or widespread illness, I could have understood the argument</b> (not agreed but understood) however the film shows moving footage of people living ordinary lives in pre-war Europe. The dancer is clothed, her movements in keeping with contemporary modern dance gestures. The message of the poem, if a poem's message needs to be distilled, is one of hope across space and time.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Finally, after<b> four requests</b> for clarification on why we were cut (each one offering a different reason for dropping the film) Managing Director, Sofia Bannister, asked the board for a detailed response. The following gives the most salient details outlining your concerns.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: #cccccc; color: #222222;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">After viewing Tova’s final cut, and having concerns about the overlay of the dancer being detrimental to the gravity of the piece, the board consulted a professor whose doctoral studies were in Holocaust cinema and who has helped us with programming in the past. She expressed extreme discomfort with the piece. This is just to say - the deliberation did indeed include someone who lost family members in the Holocaust and whose expertise on artistic depictions of the Holocaust far exceeds our own…Because, in an assembly of six people, three of whom have ancestral legacy with the Holocaust, all six found the video offensive, we determined that ratio would likely be reflected in the general audience as well. </span></span><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-size: 12pt;"> <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">After consulting with a professor of Religious Studies and Holocaust Studies, we are both "troubled that people who have an "ancestral legacy" with the Holocaust are thought qualified to pass judgement on a work of art." Isn't art supposed to make the viewer uncomfortable? <b>Isn't a collaboration commissioned by an organization meant to be supported by that organization? </b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b><br /></b></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Tova Beck-Friedman's film was submitted more than a month before the deadline, why did you wait until the night before the festival to pull her work? </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">A final note, from the professor quoted above, <b>"<span style="font-size: 12pt;">tomorrow night is Yom Hashoah, Israel's annual Holocaust Memorial Day, observed also in many Jewish communities in the Diaspora. It is ironic and sad that on the eve of this historic date, decided upon by the Israeli Knesset years ago, (y)our own contribution to the artistic response to the Holocaust has been silenced."</span></b></span><br />
<div style="background-color: white; font-size: 12pt;">
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Shame on you Visible Poetry Project for censoring artists and poets, especially in this time of crisis. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b><br /></b></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><b>If there were ever a time to support each other, that time is now. The best art pushes and challenges us to the point of discomfort. We may even find it "offensive" in the tradition of Judy Chicago's <i>The Dinner Party </i>or Allen Ginsburg's <i>Howl</i>.</b> This discomfort is how you as board members of an arts organization reacted to Tova Beck-Friedman's film. What a pity that you weren't aware enough to recognize its power. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">With the sincerest hope that you reconsider your policies for next year and that no other artists find themselves in this untenable position. Please either stop censoring your artists or make it clear in your materials that there is an agenda that the art you distribute must follow.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Sincerely yours,</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Susan Rich</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "verdana" , sans-serif;">Poet and Activist</span>Susan Richhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08857833162681601245noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4294176875047610623.post-91135417867580277982019-12-24T17:44:00.002-08:002019-12-26T11:29:07.789-08:00The Christmas Eve and Hanukkah Edition 2019<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A bit of time with Emily and Sylvia</td></tr>
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It is Christmas Eve on <a href="https://www.visitsanjuans.com/">San Juan Island</a> and the colored lights are visible clear across the harbor; they stay on all night long for ferry passengers, for me. This is my 10th year in this waterfront cottage. I travel north as soon as grades are handed-in to end my year with a writing retreat.<br />
<br />
Some years things work out better than others.<br />
<br />
While it's true that this week is the <a href="https://www.timeanddate.com/sun/@5809425">darkest time of the year</a> with <i>barely</i> over eight hours of sunlight on a good day, this year's visit has included no more than a few hours of sunlight total, at the most four. I'm being honest here. A few hours of light in 10 days and most of those days beaten down with rain and high winds. Perfect for writing you might surmise. Well, you would be wrong.<br />
<br />
And while this is a do-it-yourself retreat, in past years I've always crossed paths with a fellow poet or gone out to dinner while I'm here. Again, not this time.<br />
<br />
As a writer, I crave solitude. It may sound strange to say but I am fond of my own company. Again, not so much these last few days. Maybe it's been the radical lack of light or the fact that I'm coming off an incredibly tough year but this visit has been categorically different than the past nine.<br />
<br />
So for this year's topic: writing is really hard. It is not fun nor frivolous.<br />
<br />
A poet friend and I often talk about how writing poetry gets harder to write, not easier. The voice in my head that chides, <i>you've spent decades of your life on this and where has it gotten you?</i> seems to grow louder with each passing year. And yes, I've been writing and publishing poems since my late twenties, the voice has a point.<br />
<br />
I am not the next Shakespeare.<br />
<br />
And yet. Now in the last day of my stay I can see the clipboards lined-up on the countertop with poems I've completed, poems I've begun, poems in that sweet spot in the middle---the space when I know that they will actually be completed but aren't completed yet.<br />
<br />
I've generated new work with the help of the <a href="http://www.twosylviaspress.com/index.html">Two Sylvias Advent Calendar </a>(it has a gorgeous design and presentation) and scoured my writing notebooks for drafts written over the past 12 months. And although no one would accuse me of being especially woo-woo, I've been faithfully pulling <a href="http://www.twosylviaspress.com/index.html">Poet Tarot </a>cards each day and for the last three days, Elizabeth Bishop, Emily Dickinson and Sylvia Plath have all showed up. I don't know how many cards a tarot deck has (a lot) but statistically speaking, these three favorite poets visiting here everyday is against the odds.<br />
<br />
And along with my poets, I've had visits from a family of deer, a gang of bald eagles and many birds I cannot identify but they certainly know how to sing. And I bet they aren't concerned with how good their voices sound or if the chickadee or nuthatch in the next tree sounds better.<br />
<br />
If there is one thing I've learned is that writing poems is not a sprint but a marathon; it's a relationship developed over a lifetime with words like samovar and seesaw, atlas and archipelago. The writing of poems has made me live more intensely, persist even when there's a 1001 reasons not to, and brought incredible people into my life. And so yes, I'll be back next year. And hopefully, the next.<br />
<br />
<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Wishing you peace and the gift of being seen in this holiday season</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />Susan Richhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08857833162681601245noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4294176875047610623.post-60608709570621870302019-11-17T11:42:00.002-08:002019-11-17T12:03:00.691-08:005 Things to Look for When Sending Out Your Work: December<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<br />
<br />
When I send out poems for publication I look for a trifecta of things (+2) that have made me happy in the past. Do you have a list of things that make you go through the permutations of cover letter, bio, final revisions of revised poems? The longer I do this, the longer this whole process seems to take. And that's why when I find a magazine like <a href="https://decembermag.org/volume-30-2/">December,</a> it makes me want to share the news!<br />
<br />
<br />
1. Most importantly, the magazine must be<b> physically gorgeous.</b> Call me shallow but I <i>do </i>judge a journal by its cover. And its font, quality of paper, layout. I want to know that a good deal of care and yes, love, went into the making of this object. There are 1,000s of literary journals publishing today. You get to choose where to send your work. The poem you perhaps worked on for years deserves the best!<br />
<br />
2. In this world, I want my poems to also have some <b>on-line presence.</b> While <a href="https://decembermag.org/volume-30-2/">December</a> selects a few poems to place on their website (and mine wasn't one of them this time) they do have a user friendly site. At the end of this post I will share the beginnings of the the two poems I published in their recent issue so you can get a sense of their taste although the journal a a whole showcases diverse talents and tastes. As an aside, <a href="http://baltimorereview.org/index.php/winter_2018/contributor/susan-rich">The Baltimore Review</a> publishes every poet on-line and in an annual journal. I should say, however, that their annual journal is not as elegant as December. But they also pay in gift cards!<br />
<br />
3. <b>Cool fellow poets</b>. This one's self explanatory. I love being in the same issue with friends or poets that I look up to. My poet friends and I are always trading sources and so it's imperative to read the journal before you send them your work!<br />
<br />
4. <b>Payment. </b>Yes, I want to be compensated for my work in the exchange material that our culture values. And no, $20 for a poem is not an hourly fee. I don't believe anyone who writes poetry does it for the money. (Okay I once met a Zimbabwean poet who told me he was getting rich off his poetry but that's a different story.) I worked on "Binocular Vision" for many years and so even a small check feels as if the world is valuing my poem a little more. I did come across a press recently that gives all their books away for free as long as the reader makes a donation to an organization of her choice or passes the book along. I like this model, too --- although the funding must be all donations?<br />
<br />
5. And this last one might be a bit more controversial. <b>I look for a woman editor.</b> Thank you <a href="https://decembermag.org/masthead/">Gianna Jacobson!</a> Yes, gender matters. In my decades and <i>decades</i> of sending work to journals and being published in all 50 states, I've noticed that women editors tend to be more communicative, more generous in offering small but important edits, and more interested in my work. I know there are many exceptions to this statement. For example, Rick Barot at <a href="http://www.nereview.com/">New England Review</a> and Peter Grimes at <a href="http://pembrokemagazine.com/about-1">Pembroke Magazine</a> are two exemplary editors and people.<br />
<br />
<br />
For many years I sent my poems out to play the License Plate Game --- wanting to have a poem wandering every state in the country. When I finished that project (it took about 20 years off and on) I needed some other guide for where I wanted my work to appear. These guidelines are my current map to the wondrous world of lit magazines. I'd be curious to know how you make your choices!<br />
<br />
And here are the first few stanzas of my two poems in this month's December. If you like what you see, you can purchase a copy on their website!<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: 24px;"><b>Binocular Vision</b></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "garamond" , serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">What
happens to a zygote <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "garamond" , serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">who
never becomes—<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "garamond" , serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">no
cartilage to deliver back <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "garamond" , serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">to
the ground; no evening <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "garamond" , serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">meals
for the earth-<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "garamond" , serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">worm,
no morning glory?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "garamond" , serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Today
is your <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Happy Non- <o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: "garamond" , serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">Birthday</span></i><span style="font-family: "garamond" , serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">, 31 – perhaps <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "garamond" , serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">you
would have developed<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "garamond" , serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">into
a geologist or lounge singer—<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "garamond" , serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">keen
observer of the disappearing <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "garamond" , serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">life.
I imagine you the way <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "garamond" , serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">politicians
often fantasize<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "garamond" , serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">about
their voters: illogically and <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "garamond" , serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">with
a little greed. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "garamond" , serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">I
had you and then<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "garamond" , serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">suddenly,
didn’t have you. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="line number"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="endnote reference"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="endnote text"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="table of authorities"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Bullet 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="10" QFormat="true" Name="Title"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="1" SemiHidden="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Body Text Indent"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="11" QFormat="true" Name="Subtitle"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="22" QFormat="true" Name="Strong"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="20" QFormat="true" Name="Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Preformatted"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="Table Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" Name="Placeholder Text"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="1" QFormat="true" Name="No Spacing"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" Name="Light Shading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" Name="Light List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" Name="Light Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" Name="Medium Shading 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" Name="Medium Shading 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" Name="Medium List 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" Name="Medium List 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" Name="Medium Grid 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" Name="Medium Grid 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" Name="Medium Grid 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" Name="Dark List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" Name="Colorful Shading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" Name="Colorful List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" Name="Colorful Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" Name="Light Shading Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" Name="Light List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" Name="Light Grid Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" Name="Revision"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="34" QFormat="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="29" QFormat="true" Name="Quote"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="30" QFormat="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 1"/>
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" Name="Colorful List Accent 1"/>
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" Name="Light List Accent 2"/>
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" Name="Colorful List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 2"/>
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" Name="Light List Accent 3"/>
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" Name="Colorful List Accent 3"/>
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" Name="Colorful List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" Name="Light Shading Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" Name="Light List Accent 5"/>
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 5"/>
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 5"/>
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" Name="Colorful List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" Name="Light Shading Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" Name="Light List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" Name="Light Grid Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 6"/>
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" Name="Colorful List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="19" QFormat="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="21" QFormat="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="31" QFormat="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="32" QFormat="true"
Name="Intense Reference"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="33" QFormat="true" Name="Book Title"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="37" SemiHidden="true"
UnhideWhenUsed="true" Name="Bibliography"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" SemiHidden="true"
UnhideWhenUsed="true" QFormat="true" Name="TOC Heading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="41" Name="Plain Table 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="42" Name="Plain Table 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="43" Name="Plain Table 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="44" Name="Plain Table 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="45" Name="Plain Table 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="40" Name="Grid Table Light"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46" Name="Grid Table 1 Light"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="Grid Table 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="Grid Table 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="Grid Table 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="Grid Table 5 Dark"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51" Name="Grid Table 6 Colorful"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52" Name="Grid Table 7 Colorful"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="Grid Table 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="Grid Table 3 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="Grid Table 4 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="Grid Table 5 Dark Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="Grid Table 6 Colorful Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="Grid Table 7 Colorful Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="Grid Table 1 Light Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="Grid Table 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="Grid Table 3 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="Grid Table 4 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="Grid Table 5 Dark Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="Grid Table 6 Colorful Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="Grid Table 7 Colorful Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="Grid Table 1 Light Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="Grid Table 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="Grid Table 3 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="Grid Table 4 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="Grid Table 5 Dark Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="Grid Table 6 Colorful Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="Grid Table 7 Colorful Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="Grid Table 1 Light Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="Grid Table 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="Grid Table 3 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="Grid Table 4 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="Grid Table 5 Dark Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="Grid Table 6 Colorful Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="Grid Table 7 Colorful Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="Grid Table 1 Light Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="Grid Table 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="Grid Table 3 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="Grid Table 4 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="Grid Table 5 Dark Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="Grid Table 6 Colorful Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="Grid Table 7 Colorful Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="Grid Table 1 Light Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="Grid Table 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="Grid Table 3 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="Grid Table 4 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="Grid Table 5 Dark Accent 6"/>
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<span style="font-family: "garamond" , serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">My
insides retracted<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "garamond" , serif; font-size: 16px;">(to be continued in </span><a href="https://decembermag.org/" style="font-family: Garamond, serif; font-size: 16px;">December)</a></div>
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Goldfinch<o:p></o:p></h2>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-family: "garamond" , serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">I
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<br /></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "garamond" , serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">my
sister’s half-words<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "garamond" , serif; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "garamond" , serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">(to be continued in <a href="https://decembermag.org/">December)</a></span></div>
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<br />Susan Richhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08857833162681601245noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4294176875047610623.post-33678877034913031822019-09-28T21:54:00.002-07:002019-09-28T22:46:36.127-07:00A Must Read: ANGEL BONES by Ilyse Kusnetz <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/--zetqeCCKPE/XNttjfOKn2I/AAAAAAAAAw8/2DQ1g_ccqMcLZCZ90gNM5qg5jNGBmGRMgCLcBGAs/s1600/ANGEL%2BBONES.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1232" data-original-width="804" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/--zetqeCCKPE/XNttjfOKn2I/AAAAAAAAAw8/2DQ1g_ccqMcLZCZ90gNM5qg5jNGBmGRMgCLcBGAs/s320/ANGEL%2BBONES.png" width="208" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Angel Bones by Ilyse Kusnetz </td></tr>
</tbody></table>
This book seems to have crawled into my DNA, slipped under the skin and become a part of me. I adore everything about it. For example, the cover art on <a href="https://www.alicejamesbooks.org/bookstore/angel-bones"><b>Angel Bones</b> </a>by Ilyse Kusnetz is from a painting by Remedios Varo, one of my all time favorite painters. The poems inside attest to a life well lived. They sing with a praise for this world even in the poet's leave taking. Clear from the first poem, "Blessing for Beauty," is the indisputable truth that the speaker is living with cancer.<br />
<i><br /></i>
<i>Maybe the universe wants to spare me the apocalypse,</i><br />
<i>maybe it wants me to counsel the dead,</i><br />
<i>maybe the cancer finds me so delicious</i><br />
<i>it wants to eat me from the inside out...</i><br />
<i><br /></i>
<i>Oh trees, flowers, small animals at the bird feeder---</i><br />
<br />
And so the poems unspool, sometimes in high lyric and sometimes in plain truth. Many of the poems are also love poems to Kusnetz's husband, poet and writer, Brian Turner. One of my (many) favorites comes late in the book and is not technically a love poem at all, "Meditation on "Cottage Window, St. Remy de Provence."<br />
<i><br /></i>
<i>And so perhaps we cannot furl the lit hours</i><br />
<i>inside ourselves, relive their sinuous grace</i><br />
<br />
The poems range from the philosophical to science fiction, to nature, to a love of ginormous proportions. In my copy the pages are folded back, marked and reread again. I promise <b><a href="https://www.alicejamesbooks.org/bookstore/angel-bones">Angel Bones</a></b> will make a difference in your life. It has in mine.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<br />Susan Richhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08857833162681601245noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4294176875047610623.post-65892675117579578032019-07-29T21:34:00.000-07:002019-07-30T09:15:43.633-07:00Announcing a Forthcoming Miracle from Salmon Press: GALLERY OF POSTCARDS AND MAPS<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-oIMMD0prKT8/XT6QjyP6PMI/AAAAAAAAA00/K8YxlSW6NCMi8E0cvsW67UhsAzXEP6z-ACLcBGAs/s1600/IMG_20180414_0947571-e1545465845810.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="861" height="400" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-oIMMD0prKT8/XT6QjyP6PMI/AAAAAAAAA00/K8YxlSW6NCMi8E0cvsW67UhsAzXEP6z-ACLcBGAs/s400/IMG_20180414_0947571-e1545465845810.jpg" width="286" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Gallery of Postcards and Maps: New and Selected Poems 2000-2020</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<div>
So I have some news. It's kind of stellar and I just can't stop smiling. It's been almost a week and the effect hasn't worn off yet. I am beyond thrilled and mega excited to announce that my book,</div>
<div>
<b>GALLERY of POSTCARDS and MAPS: NEW and SELECTED</b>, will be published by<a href="https://www.salmonpoetry.com/"> Salmon Press </a>of Ireland (with US distribution). This makes this getting older thing not so hard to take. </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Over the past 20 years I've published four books of poetry starting with <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Cartographers-Tongue-Susan-Rich/dp/1893996069/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=the+cartographer%27s+tongue&qid=1564459917&s=gateway&sr=8-1">THE CARTOGRAPHER'S TONGUE / POEMS of the WORLD</a> which focused on my time in the <a href="https://www.peacecorps.gov/">Peace Corps</a> in West Africa, my Fulbright in South Africa and the death of both my parents. This book won both the PEN USA Award and the Peace Corps Writers Award. Next was <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Cures-Include-Travel-Susan-Rich/dp/1893996751">CURES INCLUDE TRAVEL</a> and then THE <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Alchemists-Kitchen-Susan-Rich/dp/1935210149/ref=sr_1_6?keywords=the+alchemist%27s+kitchen&qid=1564460355&s=books&sr=1-6">ALCHEMIST's KITCHEN</a> and <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Cloud-Pharmacy-Susan-Rich/dp/193521053X/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=cloud+pharmacy&qid=1564460417&s=books&sr=1-1">CLOUD PHARMACY,</a> all published by White Pine Press. You might notice they all seem to be on sale at the moment!</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
There are so many people to thank for helping make this book and its publication a reality (well, it's not going to be out for a little while) but let me start with the main inspirations: <a href="https://www.ilyakaminsky.com/">Ilya Kaminsky,</a> <a href="http://www.geraldinemills.com/About.html">Geraldine Mills,</a> <a href="http://www.sandrayannone.com/">Sandy Yaonnone</a>, and of course, the amazing <a href="https://www.irishtimes.com/news/a-parent-to-poetry-1.896940">Jessie Lendennie.</a> Sometimes the stars really do align. Or as my dear friend, the poet <a href="https://www.agodon.com/index.html">Kelli Russell Agodon</a> says, maybe it was the chipmunk that came out of nowhere to stare at me for a good long while on a summer morning. </div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
Or to coin a phrase --- that you will know if you are over 60, "I get by with a little help from my friends..."</div>
Susan Richhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08857833162681601245noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4294176875047610623.post-69377003247762867402019-06-09T13:56:00.001-07:002019-06-09T14:27:42.945-07:00The Magic of Nine: Poets on the Coast, Sept 6-8, 2019 - Nine Years Old, Grade 9---<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-84N9T6ybFyU/XP1PYOevE2I/AAAAAAAAAyI/rWKfkZcX4jk1k3ALMpqCCqHGDn34mZnBACLcBGAs/s1600/Poets%2Bon%2Bthe%2BCoast%2BPoster%2B2019.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1018" height="400" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-84N9T6ybFyU/XP1PYOevE2I/AAAAAAAAAyI/rWKfkZcX4jk1k3ALMpqCCqHGDn34mZnBACLcBGAs/s400/Poets%2Bon%2Bthe%2BCoast%2BPoster%2B2019.png" width="253" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">I like the number 9. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">I vividly remember being 9 years old and being in the 4th grade at the <a href="https://www.brookline.k12.ma.us/driscoll">Michael Driscoll School.</a> My teacher, Miss Smith (rumored to have been a runway model in the Barbados) was my teacher and I still remember our classroom: the Reading Train made from colored construction paper taped to the lower walls. Whenever we read a new book, we slipped a piece of paper in our train car. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">At least I think that's what we did, mostly I just remember the train. Then there were sugar cube cities and the study of countries and flags. This all happened in <a href="https://www.npr.org/2019/06/09/730885382/student-spurs-brookline-mass-to-offer-free-tampons-and-pads-in-public-buildings">Brookline, Massachusetts</a> ---- now famous for being the first municipality in the country to supply bathrooms (city hall, libraries, schools) with free feminine hygiene products. No more "menstrual shaming" said 18 year old (that's 9 x 2) <span style="background-color: white;">Sarah Groustra, a Brookline High School graduate. </span> Kind of a cool thing for a town to become famous for.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">But I digress.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">9th grade is more of a blur --- but it was a big deal. In Brookline, it's the first year of high school. First boyfriend, first freedoms, first poetry class. My 8th grade teacher,<a href="https://www.gannacademy.org/gann-news-detail?pk=994975"> Jerry Katz</a>, had taken me up to the high school and convinced someone at Brookline High School to let me take an "advanced" poetry class. What I remember is my first exposure to Emily Dickinson --- thank you <a href="https://www.gannacademy.org/gann-news-detail?pk=994975">Dr. Katz</a>!</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">And flash forward too many years to count and I'm on the brink of the 9th year of<a href="http://poetsonthecoast.weebly.com/register.html"> Poets on the Coast</a>: A Writing Retreat for Women. It was over 10 years ago that one December evening, Kelli Russell Agodon and I sat in a cottage on San Juan Island and came up with the idea of running our own retreat. We'd both worked as guest faculty at several writers conferences -- sometimes having to teach in unheated rooms and once underneath a modest staircase.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">The first year of<a href="http://poetsonthecoast.weebly.com/register.html"> Poets on the Coast</a> took place at the Sylvia Beach Hotel on the Oregon Coast. On the way down I5, the interstate was closed due to a prairie fire (in Oregon) and Kelli and I arrived late to our own retreat! 1001 thanks to those first 16 women who trusted us with their poems and taught us so much.</span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-YJbdL32mrt8/XP1yLIo_VHI/AAAAAAAAAyc/4yp38xCX5H0N39xOWnZ_HndQ4rACEZZsgCLcBGAs/s1600/Screen%2BShot%2B2019-06-09%2Bat%2B1.54.27%2BPM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="810" data-original-width="712" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-YJbdL32mrt8/XP1yLIo_VHI/AAAAAAAAAyc/4yp38xCX5H0N39xOWnZ_HndQ4rACEZZsgCLcBGAs/s320/Screen%2BShot%2B2019-06-09%2Bat%2B1.54.27%2BPM.png" width="281" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Now nine (!) years later, </span><a href="http://poetsonthecoast.weebly.com/register.html" style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif;">Poets on the Coast</a><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"> has doubled in size and moved up to the beautiful town of La Conner, Washington, home to the Skagit River Poetry Festival, the </span><a href="http://www.monamuseum.org/" style="font-family: Times, "Times New Roman", serif;">Museum of Northwest Arts</a><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">, and the epicenter for the artists of the Northwest School. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span>
A few of the things we've done in recent years to up the cool factor each year includes: a visiting poet in residence; this year we welcome <a href="https://www.lenakhalaftuffaha.com/bio.html">Lena Khalaf Tuffaha,</a> a visit (and if desired) publication at the <a href="http://www.monamuseum.org/">Museum of Northwest Arts (MONA)</a>, an open mic for all (if desired) participants, and a one on one (free with registration) session with<a href="https://www.agodon.com/index.html"> Kelli Russell Agodon</a>, <a href="https://www.lenakhalaftuffaha.com/bio.html">Lena Khalaf Tuffaha,</a> or me.<br />
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I know I might be biased but I think this is the best weekend residency for women poets ever! Each year we have true beginners who are at their first conference and just trying their hand at poetry to the poets who have published their own books. We have had educators, students, farmers, children's book authors, therapists, stay at home moms, poet laureates, and grandmothers join us.<br />
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Some women stay at the<a href="https://www.laconnerlodging.com/"> Country Inn or Channel Lodge;</a> some women stay at <a href="http://bedandbreakfastlaconner.com/">Katy's Inn,</a> a VRBO, with friends, or live in the area. If you are free the weekend of September 6th - 8th and want to be part of a creative, supportive, and fun group of women --- we might be a match! To register you can <a href="http://poetsonthecoast.weebly.com/register.html">click here!</a> Or leave a message below if you have questions.<br />
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span>Susan Richhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08857833162681601245noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4294176875047610623.post-10678643705777011652019-05-04T14:10:00.002-07:002019-05-04T15:09:52.632-07:00Mary Peelen's QUANTUM HERESIES is here and here is why you want to read it!<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-mSPRspXtWBo/XM3gkr5gszI/AAAAAAAAAv0/lX8MlXspd5AyEezZbIsNDLz5gx7KdVSGgCLcBGAs/s1600/Screenshot%2B2019-05-04%2B11.56.45.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1236" data-original-width="824" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-mSPRspXtWBo/XM3gkr5gszI/AAAAAAAAAv0/lX8MlXspd5AyEezZbIsNDLz5gx7KdVSGgCLcBGAs/s320/Screenshot%2B2019-05-04%2B11.56.45.png" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Quantum Heresies by Mary Peelen</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
I have returned to the poems in <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Quantum-Heresies-Poems-Mary-Peelen/dp/1941783554">QUANTUM HERESIES</a> many times in the last two months. How can a debut collection of poems be so arresting, so superb? One answer is that Mary Peelen has been hard at work on her craft for years; she is not a dilettante but rather a true poet. Also, she has lived a fascinating and hard-won life.<br />
<br />
Take for example these lines from "String Theory,"<br />
<br />
<i>Here at the horizon of theoretical extinction,</i><br />
<i>we cut flowers for the table.</i><br />
<i><br /></i>
<i>We sing the way weary mourners do,</i><br />
<i>praising geometry as if miracles could happen.</i><br />
<i><br /></i>
The environment, mathematics, love, and loss in two couplets. I am in awe of these lines and of lines from many other poems as well including: "x", "Unified Theory," and "Sunday Morning" to name but a few stellar examples of Peelen's deft and spare language.<br />
<br />
Elizabeth Bishop once said that what she liked best in a poem was "to see a mind in motion." And she then added that this was of course an impossibility. That the poems that did their best to mirror the mind's movement were working hard to display such ease. Take for instance these lines from Peelen's, "Sunday Morning,"<br />
<br />
<i>I put my faith in Algebra.</i><br />
<i>And Wallace Stevens, of course,</i><br />
<i><br /></i>
<i>his quantum heresies, his dominion,</i><br />
<i>coffee and oranges</i><br />
<br />
I wondered a bit at this beautiful title that also appears in this poem, <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Quantum-Heresies-Poems-Mary-Peelen/dp/1941783554">Quantum Heresies,</a> and although roughly defined it means the amount of energy it takes to adhere to spiritual beliefs, there is also the wonderful HER in heresies. Perhaps the energy to believe in the self, in the female body, in the body of the world? Well, now I am going out on a limb. I think you will just have to read it yourself to see.<br />
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If you are a fan of the poetry of Elizabeth Bishop, Wallace Stevens, or the novels of Jane Austen --- you really want to check out Quantum Heresies.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-_dqqNfiMvh4/XM3kjL4BWvI/AAAAAAAAAwI/GMmcKhDYeGwRyIfUfSCSR1PnNAFE9wuRQCLcBGAs/s1600/Screenshot%2B2019-05-04%2B12.13.54.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="934" data-original-width="994" height="300" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-_dqqNfiMvh4/XM3kjL4BWvI/AAAAAAAAAwI/GMmcKhDYeGwRyIfUfSCSR1PnNAFE9wuRQCLcBGAs/s320/Screenshot%2B2019-05-04%2B12.13.54.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Mary Peelen, author of QUANTUM HERESIES</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
If you live in the greater <span style="color: blue;"><b>Seattle area,</b></span> Mary Peelen will be reading with Kelli Russell Agodon and myself <b><span style="color: blue;">THIS Friday,</span></b> 7 pm, <a href="http://www.openpoetrybooks.com/">Open Books,</a> May 10th. This will be her only Seattle appearance. We would love to see you there~Susan Richhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08857833162681601245noreply@blogger.com2