In my classroom, alone, my senior students out already and a small, manageable list of things to do to wrap up the school year, I’ve got more time than I’m used to having and I find myself often thinking of you, Orlando, and looking at photos in an article, “Thousands Attend Vigil to Prove ThatContinue reading “#226: Orlando, Florida”
Tag Archives: poem
#224: Early Summer Loss
On this hot June evening, my son and I listen to new music in the cool basement, staying up late, having a pretty darn good time. Before bed, though, one more chore: fold and put away the laundry in a pile on the bed upstairs. O horrors, as I’m folding I see these little curled upContinue reading “#224: Early Summer Loss”
#223: A Course in Silence
My sophomores and I are studying the poetry of William Stafford and, as is inevitable in a study of poetry, at least from my perspective, we are also writing poems. An exercise slightly more open-ended than the corruption assignment, is to simply take inspiration from our man Stafford, either by attempting, as he did forContinue reading “#223: A Course in Silence”
#222: Why I Am Happy
Poet and teacher of mine from a long way back, Peter Sears, taught me about a thing called poetry by corruption, whereby you, the writer, take a poem that you like and just simply and with impunity steal things from it, or, steal it wholesale except for some words or phrases you’ve blanked out from theContinue reading “#222: Why I Am Happy”
#217: Poem on the 26th of the Month of April
My head is empty of poems; instead it’s full of Shakespeare, trying to hold on to my lines even though the run is over. I found myself running some of them today for no other reason than to see if I could do it. My mind is full of The Flaming Lips because I’ve been listening toContinue reading “#217: Poem on the 26th of the Month of April”
#214: Lord Capulet Interrogates Michael Jarmer in a Closing Night Sonnet
First things first: Happy birthday, Bill! It’s been a super rough year. The loss of Bowie, Rickman et. al., and just days ago now, the devastating loss of Prince, makes one super conscious of the fragility of life, especially when our heroes fall, heroes who seemed to us untouchable and timeless, almost god-like. But now, involvedContinue reading “#214: Lord Capulet Interrogates Michael Jarmer in a Closing Night Sonnet”
#209: 35 Years Later, The Actor Playing Capulet Remembers Auditioning for Romeo
I was 16 when I auditioned for Romeo. I got Mercutio instead and I was happy about that because that guy has the best death scene in all of literature. But in preparation for my Romeo audition I carved out a space in my brain for Romeo’s balcony soliloquy and I still know it to this day, 35Continue reading “#209: 35 Years Later, The Actor Playing Capulet Remembers Auditioning for Romeo”
#208: Lord Capulet Cleans Out His Chakra House
Down there in the red Root the ground is slipping. That navel orange Sacral space is pretty much on fire and my Solar Plexis spins like a drunken dervish on a yellow sun. All the Heart Stuff bubbles and boils dangerously toward destruction, comes up green in my throat and I find myself shouting all the time. Finally,Continue reading “#208: Lord Capulet Cleans Out His Chakra House”
#203: Capulet Speaks of His Daughter’s Grief
Today’s assignment from napowrimo is to write a thing called a san san (three three in Chinese), a form that incorporates a particular rhyme scheme pattern coupled with the repetition of three images three times throughout the eight line poem. That’s a mouthful. It was difficult. In fact, I failed somewhat with the form. My poemContinue reading “#203: Capulet Speaks of His Daughter’s Grief”
#201: ABC Shakespeare
This may be obvious to anyone paying attention, but I have of late had Shakespeare on the brain. It’s a pattern with me, I think. The last time I took on a role in a Shakespeare play the same thing happened: my entire creative output became infused by the bard. Trying to write songs inContinue reading “#201: ABC Shakespeare”
michael jarmer 