I've got six poems in the October issue of Nth Position. I like the range of work represented: the oldest one is from the early 1990s, and the most recent from last year. My thanks to Todd Swift for showcasing so much of my work!
Showing posts with label Todd Swift. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Todd Swift. Show all posts
Wednesday, October 08, 2008
Friday, May 09, 2008
Eyewear: "Thomas Hardy Listens to Louis Armstrong"
Todd Swift features little ol' me today at Eyewear, with my poem "Thomas Hardy Listens to Louis Armstrong." Thank you, Todd!
Thursday, December 20, 2007
Wednesday, Ash
"Poetry may require a non-believer to love a god, or a god to love a man." (Todd Swift)
This reminded me of Jill Alexander Essbaum's poem "Wednesday, Ash," from her book Heaven. It begins with a hammer: "Nothing of me will survive." It pursues the idea by referring to a series of body parts, and how each of them will disappear when one dies, then provides a first summary: "How can that be? Nothing, nothing of us survives."
That is the first line of the fourth stanza from the end (the poem is in quatrains). Then the poem begins to address the matter of how the Christian promise overcomes this problem, concluding, in an address to "my God":
Save us to a grace we cannot ever hope to understand,
such that in our dyings—behold—somehow?—we live.
I scribbled at the bottom of the page: "A poem that makes it possible for a non-believer to feel the believer's need to believe, the source of that need in fear of death, the glory of Christ's promise to overcome death for each believer."
In general, in fact, Heaven helps this non-believer feel what belief is like. It may not make me "love a god," but it does "require" me to do so, as long as I am convinced by each poem.
This reminded me of Jill Alexander Essbaum's poem "Wednesday, Ash," from her book Heaven. It begins with a hammer: "Nothing of me will survive." It pursues the idea by referring to a series of body parts, and how each of them will disappear when one dies, then provides a first summary: "How can that be? Nothing, nothing of us survives."
That is the first line of the fourth stanza from the end (the poem is in quatrains). Then the poem begins to address the matter of how the Christian promise overcomes this problem, concluding, in an address to "my God":
Save us to a grace we cannot ever hope to understand,
such that in our dyings—behold—somehow?—we live.
I scribbled at the bottom of the page: "A poem that makes it possible for a non-believer to feel the believer's need to believe, the source of that need in fear of death, the glory of Christ's promise to overcome death for each believer."
In general, in fact, Heaven helps this non-believer feel what belief is like. It may not make me "love a god," but it does "require" me to do so, as long as I am convinced by each poem.
Monday, August 27, 2007
Mimesis 2, Summer 2007
My contributor's copy of Mimesis 2, Summer 2007, arrived while I was in the U.S. in July, so I have only just gotten around to reading it. The highlights for me are "Better to Be Horses," by Salli Shepherd, and "Veress," by Todd Swift, especially the latter: "this is joy, this is a good day."
TS's poem is about Sandor Veress, whose work I can wholeheartedly recommend. Andras Schiff and Heinz Holliger have both recorded wonderful CDs of Veress's music. I first heard Veress's work when Holliger conducted "Hommage à Paul Klee" in Basel with Schiff on piano. It was a breathtaking performance.
Since it was my contributor's copy, the issue also has my work in it: three poems, to be precise: "Reach," "The Baghdad Poet," and the first three "sides" of "A Three-Record Set on a Double CD." It's a pleasure to see my work between such fine poems by Shepherd and Swift.
TS's poem is about Sandor Veress, whose work I can wholeheartedly recommend. Andras Schiff and Heinz Holliger have both recorded wonderful CDs of Veress's music. I first heard Veress's work when Holliger conducted "Hommage à Paul Klee" in Basel with Schiff on piano. It was a breathtaking performance.
Since it was my contributor's copy, the issue also has my work in it: three poems, to be precise: "Reach," "The Baghdad Poet," and the first three "sides" of "A Three-Record Set on a Double CD." It's a pleasure to see my work between such fine poems by Shepherd and Swift.
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