Dana Guthrie Martin et al. are launching a bigger and bolder version of Read Write Poem this Friday. I’ve read about all the new features, and I’m very impressed. As I told Dana on her site, I foresee creative writing teachers flocking to this online resource. It’s going to be very interactive, with forums, celebrity poet prompts, more reviews, more news, more of everything. They’ll even write your poem for you. Just kidding, 🙂
After writing a column at Read Write Poem for almost two years, and after working with many of the poets who are still involved, I feel a special kinship with this community, and I applaud their continued energy and expansion.
Make sure you check out the new site on Friday, July 31! I know I’ll be there.
I based a poem on a detail from this painting by El Greco, titled ‘La Sagrada Familia.’ The postcard shows only Mary’s face.
Detail of La Sagrada Familia
after El Greco
What you see is my face
below a psychedelic nimbus,
hair held in place under a lace mantilla,
eyes downcast, skin like cream,
lips and robes stained
the color of ripe berries.
What you don’t see is the infant
held to my breast, his fingers
entwined with mine.
I wish I could show him to you,
but he’s been cropped from my story;
he’s soil, cosmic dust, words on a page.
***
I hope no one takes this poem as sacrilegious, although I suppose there’s no way around that it is. I’m thinking of how Mary would feel, having her son taken from her. If I were Mary, and very bitter, I might feel this way.
At The Classy Flea in Marietta I found several bins of old greeting cards, along with a few postcards. I needed ten more for the thirty-one I’ll be sending off during August. Actually, today I sent off my first one, to number 79 on the list. The Poetry Postcard Project is a great way to get your writing charged. All you need to do is fill up one small square on a postcard.
The MFA program I’m starting in August has prompted me to make some huge changes, not all of them very easy to make. I’ve had to resign from teaching yoga at the YMCA on Mondays and Tuesdays because I’m going to be in class at those times. This is a tough goodbye for me, because I really enjoy the community at the Y, and I get a great feeling of peace and calm from teaching the classes.
I’ve also had to back out of my work with Pindrop Press, which is headed by Jo Hemmant. Most of you who read this blog know Jo, and know what a great person she is. It has been hard letting go of these activities, but my current financial and family situation have made it necessary for me to change directions.
And sadly, I won’t be editing ouroboros review with Jo any more, although hopefully I’ll be able to help Jo out if and when she needs it. It’s a fabulous magazine, mostly because of Jo’s attention to detail and her quest for high artistic quality. I’ll still support the magazine 100%, although it will mostly be from the sidelines from here on out.
Many thanks to Jo, who has taught me a lot about editing a magazine, and who has had to put up with my changing course in the middle of the stream.
In August I’ll be teaching English Composition to freshmen, tutoring at the university writing studio, and taking three graduate classes, in addition to being a mother to my high-school son. My college-aged son is fairly self sufficient, although there always seems to be something – a car problem, laundry, money, etc… . Oh, right, I also have a husband. I guess he needs me a little.
If I had super powers I’d ask for a brain that never got sleepy, the ability to do three or four things at once, plus enough confidence to never feel angst about anything new. In the meantime I fret.
JC Reilly, who has recently had her poems published in ouroboros review, has just announced the release of the third issue of Chickenpinata, an online poetry (and art) magazine she co-edits. There is a wonderful poem by Karen Head in this issue. The theme is ‘bridges.’ Congratulations, JC!
Poet, editor, and charming-young-man-about-town Dustin Brookshire is hosting a poetry exchange via snail mail. If you go to his blog you can read about how to be a part of this exchange. I’m going to participate because I need something to shake the page fright out of me. Since I haven’t been sharing my poems on my blog, I’ve been feeling inhibited, as if everything I write has to be gold. Which means I’ve been writing garbage lately. Writing is all about expression of self and exchange of ideas, at least for me. So climb aboard Dustin’s poetry train and take a ride.
Amy George, who has a poem in issue 3 of ouroboros review, is the editor of Bird’s Eye reView, an online poetry and art journal. She publishes narrative poems, which I enjoy. Check it out! The latest issue will provide you with a pleasant interlude of reading.
The art is by Donna Marie Martin. You can read about her work on Bird’s Eye ReView.
One of the must-visit places on our itinerary whenever we pass through Boston is Pino’s Pizza. My husband and I, back when we first started dating, used to go to the one on Cleveland Circle, near where I lived and worked. He had already been a regular since his high school days. And now our sons carry on the tradition.
Pino’s marinara sauce is perfection, the crust is thin and light, and they add just the right amount of cheese – a true work of art. There are glass jars of crushed peppers and Parmesan cheese on the counter to add some extra flavor to your pie, and a wide array of sparkling waters and soda. The heat from their open oven doors reminds me of the summer air in Atlanta.
Balanced On the Edge 