This column’s primary poem is “One Art” by Elizabeth Bishop, written in 1975. Although the first line of this poem is “The art of losing isn’t hard to master;” the same way Steven Sondheim’s “Send in the Clowns” isn’t about clowns, this isn’t about losing things, certainly not keys. Both follow Emily Dickinson’s edict: “Tell the […]
This continues a series of columns that feature a much-loved poem and poems that speak to, or resonate with, that poem. This week’s poem is “Wild Geese,” written by Mary Oliver. The second poem, “Mindfulness” by Wang Wei, fits well with the spiritual message of the Oliver poem. The third poem, “October Dusk” by Diane
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This is the seventh in a series of columns that feature a much-loved poem, and a second poem that speaks to, or resonates with, the first poem. This week’s poem is “Requiem,” written by Robert Louis Stevenson. This poem was carved into Stevenson’s gravestone. The line that attracted me was “Glad did I live and
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This continues the series of columns that highlight a much-loved poem and presents other poems that speak to, or resonate with, that poem. This week features “Lead,” by Mary Oliver. The second related poem is by Emily Dickinson; the third is one of mine. The complete Poetry Foundation entry on Mary Oliver is available at Poetry Foundation:
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This continues a series of columns that feature a much-loved poem and a poems that speak to, or resonate with, that poem. This week’s poem is “Oatmeal,” written by Galway Kinnell in the late 1980s. The two poems that resonate with Galway’s are “Dinky” by Theodore Roethke and “Jabberwocky” by Lewis Carroll. Kinnell was Poet
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Poetry is far from becoming a cultural artifact regardless of the Information Age’s dry mechanical demands. The discipline serves too many vital functions to be avoided or overlooked for any extended period of time. In fact, everyone should write a poem, and soon. Following are ten reasons why. When you write a poem, you participate
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