“Ring Out Wild Bells” is as strong a poetic affirmation of hope as is to be found anywhere.
Monthly Archives: December 2022
Ring Out the Old, Ring in the New
Posted in Uncategorized Tagged "Ring Out Wild Bells", Alfred Lord Tennyson, Christmas, In Memoriam, New Year's Day Comments closed
Worried about BS? Read Great Lit
While I enjoy Peter Brooks’s “Seduced by Story,” I wish it went further.
Posted in Uncategorized Tagged Defense of Poesy, fiction, Peter Brooks, Seduced by Story, Sir Philip Sidney Comments closed
The Chaotic Joys of a Family Reunion
As our family gathers for a post-
Christmas reunion, I find some of the joyous chaos captured in a Rita Dove poem.
No Other Pear Can Compare
Poet Helen Mitsios’s ecstatic praise of Harry and David pears.
Posted in Uncategorized Tagged "Figs", "Ode to the Royal Riviera Pear", "Persimmons, "Plum Trees", D.H. Lawrence, fruit, Helen Mitsios, Li-Young Lee, Mary Oliver, pears Comments closed
Maybe Books Choose Us
In Ozeki’s “Book of Form & Emptiness,” books have special ways of getting through to us.
Oliver on the Cruel Beauty of Cold
In “Cold Poem,” Mary Oliver finds a positive life message in bitter cold conditions.
Posted in Uncategorized Tagged "Cold Poem", Extreme cold, extreme weather events, Mary Oliver, Winter Comments closed
What Shines Now in the Dark of Night?
Rilke’s “Birth of Christ” emphasizes the simplicity of the moment.
Posted in Uncategorized Tagged "Birth of Christ", Birth of Christ, Christmas, Rainer Maria Rilke Comments closed
Jesus as Refugee
Two poems that focus on Jesus as a refugee: Scott Bates’s “Witness” and Malcolm Guite’s “Refugee.”
Posted in Uncategorized Tagged "Refugee", "Witness, Malcolm Guite, Scott Bates, slaughter of the innocents Comments closed
