Fascinated by the way the last line, and only the last line, of the last poem (The Mystic Blue) is changed in the London and New York editions of Amores by D.H. Lawrence. Amores was published in 1916.
London Edition: “Of midnight and shake it to fire, till the flame of the shadow we see.”
New York Edition: “Of midnight shake it to fire, so the secret of death we see.”
Common Grace is a wonderful poetry collection by Aaron Caycedo-Kimura from Beacon Press. My favorite poems: Burial, marking territory, Nest, and If this were the day. The collection, which showcases a wide range of forms — from prose poems to one-liner haiku — is infused with memory, family history, anguish, connection, and the astonishments of everyday life. Highly recommended, most definitely worth seeking out and adding to your stack of poetry books.
Truly enjoying the wonderful new poetry collection by Regine Ebner: Oxidized Pennies — desert infused poetry exploring passion, longing, dreams, and memory. My favorite poems: “Glances”, “Gifts”, and “Feasts.” So glad to have discovered Regine’s transportive work through Black Bough Poetry’s TopTweetTuesday poetry community. She is an amazing poet!
This riveting poem by Carl Sandburg inspired the recent installment of The Falling Dream newsletter. The poem was published in Sandburg’s classic poetry book Chicago Poems, published in 1916.
This is a collaboration with the artist Maggie Umber. I took a photo during a quiet moment in the Fall, capturing a lone swan majestically making its way along the still water. It inspired me to write a poem, and I posted both the photo and poem online. Maggie saw this post and was inspired to paint the image, and during the process, the swan disappeared. I was then inspired to write another poem, and create an image of the photo, artwork, and poems, side by side.
It really resonated with me how the swan disappeared in Maggie’s painting. Was it a mirage? Pure imagination? A dream? Or just life — there it is, and then it is gone. And yet the moment lives on — in memory, a photograph, artwork, and poems. The smallest, quietest, fleeting happenings have a way of just going and going, and perhaps that is what truly binds everything together and helps us make sense of our lives and the mystifying world around us.
Maggie is a truly amazing artist making all kinds of innovative work, including one of my favorite graphic novels — Sound of Snow Falling. Her forthcoming graphic novel — Chrysanthemum Under the Waves — is one of the books I am anticipating the most. The disappearing swan piece she painted is available as a print via her website.
Thrilled to be featured on Eat the Storms, a fantastic poetry podcast hosted and produced by poet Damien Donnelly. I read an interconnected poem that begins with finding and then walking through a secret door in New York City. The other poets on the podcast are stellar, and this poetry podcast show overall provides a much-needed reprieve from the stress and news of the day. Poetry helps soothe, but it also helps us process — in a very unique and creative way — the urgencies of our times. Big thanks to Damien — a true force of poetry. Learn more and listen here.
Sara Teasdale wrote many poems about love, longing, and New York City. Here is a poem that combines all three, with the moon gazing down in wonder at the electric, always-on lights of a city that never sleeps. These are lights that inspire and energize, that widen the eyes and keep you seeking and striving and hungry for more of whatever it is your are looking for.
(From Rivers to the Sea, 1915.)
Are you heading towards the lights?
NOTE: This is excerpted from my twice-monthly newsletter The Falling Dream, which features some of the key ingredients for dreams. Subscribe here.
Unreachable sky
beyond the fade
of the shimmer
from the leaves of long ago
there echoes among
the broken rings
of forgotten days
the bitter chill
in the long stretch of after
This photo was first published in Black Bough Poetry, Issue 4: Divine Darkness.
Dream dreamers newsletter: The Falling Dream
A coldest of days
forges a crystal palace
rule lasts a moment
This poem and photograph originally appeared in the literary journal Three Drops from a Cauldron.
Jeffrey Yamaguchi 