The duplex is a poetic form invented by Jericho Brown, fourteen sonnet-like lines distributed in a way akin to the ghazal, which the poet describes as an effort to 'gut' the sonnet. The sonnet is the poetic form par excellence, strict though expansive, recurrent throughout the history of literature from Petrarca to Shakespeare and from … Continue reading Jericho Brown // Duplex (I Begin with Love)
It is too often that aloneness is conflated with its obverse, loneliness; the need for time spent alone -- misinterpreted as egocentrism or aloofness. The poem I've picked for today is, in my reading of it, a celebration of being alone and a commitment to nurturing the most important relationship each of us is entrusted … Continue reading Stevie Smith // In My Dreams
I am here to account for the gap in my resume, i.e. how I made this blog at the age of 18 as a form of therapy then forgot about it for over 2 years.
I graduated high school this week. The words feel heavy and surreal, as if I shouldn't be typing them; as if there's nothing I could have ever been than a child. I've spent the entire week looking backward, into a past that seems like it belongs to someone else, despite its striking familiarity, which is … Continue reading Christina Rossetti // Up-Hill
Today High School truly felt like it was ending. We took our graduation photos. We laughed and hugged (not nearly enough) and I thought about the trees. I thought about the light. I though about the four years throughout which being around each other became ordinary and comfortable. I am finding myself trying to memorize … Continue reading Marjorie Saiser // Weren’t We Beautiful
Every once in a while, my Discover Weekly feature on Spotify does its job. Mostly I let it play in the background, while doing my schoolwork or tidying up my shelves. Earlier than a month ago, as I was doing my usual repetitive tasks, a soft electronic song played on the speakers. The closest description … Continue reading Paradise Rot: The Strange & Intricate Mycelium of Desire
What first drew me to Natasha Oladokun's poem was the last stanza, read out of context: and God is both the table and the hunger,/ and I am both the bullet and the gunner. It paints a vivid mental image to anyone who has oscillated between embracing, resenting, and seeking comfort in their (sometimes one-sided) … Continue reading Natasha Oladokun // Saturday Night Special
Love, like every other thing, is learned. The way we love, and especially the way we express it, is not innate; and sometimes it can be tied back to traumatic events. The core of Ocean Vuong's poetry is love, usually the difficult, dysfunctional kind. For him, the written word is a way out, a reintroduction … Continue reading Ocean Vuong // Into The Breach
In Transparent Things, God-Sized Hole, Dana Roeser equates the absence of divinity not only with aimlessness and lack of purpose, but also with a kind of translucence, with psychologically induced invisibility. She clings to the small, insignificant possessions, longing for something to keep her grounded in reality, the clutter that keeps me bound to this … Continue reading Dana Roeser // Transparent Things, God-Sized Hole
Mary Oliver is one of the poets I keep closest to my heart. She is a meticulous observer of the natural world: all sorts of wild animals, from kingfishers and owls to foxes and snakes, come to life through her words. She is a reminder that the world we live in is to be cherished, … Continue reading Mary Oliver // The Swan
archive of longings 