April in the rearview mirror

April – what a month. I ushered it in with my annual April 1 (bunny bunny) reading of T.S. Eliot’s “The Waste Land,” then spent almost the entire remainder of the month reading and listening (and reading and listening, and reading and listening) to Leonard Cohen’s last book, The Flame. At month’s end, I had read the tactile book twice and listened to it on CD at least four times, if not five (starting in March). It was worth every minute. In between, I got to see Andrea Gibson perform, and read a lot of other poetry by a wide range of authors. I read poetry every single day of April, and it was a blessing. I also wrote poetry every day, although not all of it got published here. Here are all the pieces that did. There also were pieces I started and am still working on, pieces I discarded, and little snippets that found life only on my Twitter stream. Case in point:

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A little e.e. cummings to end National Poetry Month

On the last day of National Poetry Month—today—I turned my attention finally away from Leonard Cohen and listened to a CD of e.e. cummings reading his own work. Undeterred by the fact that he was a pretty terrible reader (or this was one truly substandard performance), I was happily reminded how much I love his poem “somewhere i have never traveled, gladly beyond.” Continue reading

Obsession: Leonard Cohen

I’ve spent much of the early part of April, National Poetry Month, reading the poetry of Leonard Cohen. That’s largely because I spent much of the end of March doing the same. I came across Cohen’s last book, The Flame, among my library’s CD books, and brought it home to accompany me on my way to and from work. Halfway through, I went back to the library and got the hardcover book as well.

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Taking a walk with Lillian Boxfish

I’ve just finished taking a New Year’s Eve walk with Lillian Boxfish.

I know it’s not yet New Year’s Eve. Ms. Boxfish is the title character in Lillian Boxfish Takes a Walk, by Chicago author Kathleen Rooney. Ms. Boxfish loves walking through Manhattan, where she has lived for nearly 60 years, and she unexpectedly spends her New Year’s Eve (1984 into 1985) tromping through the city she loves, instead of curled up in bed falling asleep with a book as she had planned. Continue reading

Immigration, shame and poetry

If you’re one of the 98-99 percent of U.S. residents who isn’t a full-blooded Native American, immigration is your family story. You might be the first generation in the U.S., or you might be the 10th; but somewhere back in your lineage you’ll find immigrants.

And chances are, you’ll find immigrants who were belittled, shamed and made to feel like outsiders. Even if your ancestors were among the first pilgrims, and might not have faced that on this new continent, think about why they came here. They were belittled, shamed and made to feel like outsiders elsewhere.

Poet José Olivarez is a first-generation Mexican-American, and shame and the quest to belong are very personal themes to him. Continue reading