Nota Bene
Bartolomé de las Casas Woke up Daniel Ellsberg Woke up Oscar Romero Woke up Bella Levenshteyn How shall we wake up? –from novel-in-progress, Our Heroic and Ceaseless 24/7 Struggle against Tsuris
Category: No Time for Poetry but Exactly What Is
The Way of the World
Our friends organized a potluck dinner A small gathering to welcome back Rebecca Who’d been in Uganda for ten months Doing therapy and social work With scores of people Who had survived the civil war (In…
Poems Overheard Last Night
1. Who needs Rumi? We’ve got Fatima! She’s the ultimate poem. 2. If Rumi had met Fatima He would have forgotten Shams– Just like that!
Together
“So her mother died from a brain tumor? Sure, I can spend some time with her” “You’re spending too much time on Netflix? Let’s read Mansfield Park, 30 minutes a night, whaddaya say?” “Your friend…
Gratitude/998
Since she took my class in 2007 She’s read The Book of Mev six times It’s an annual ritual It’s reading as rejuvenation To instill urgency To her flagging spirit
They Whispered So So Softly
We were on our honeymoon in Sicily Visiting with friends from graduate school They were both Sicilian-Americans They had moved there to start a family They had us out to their home in the country…
Gratitude
Sometimes you encounter people who are so pure, beautiful, and content. They give you the impression that they are divine, that they are actually saints or holy beings. What you perceive in them is their…
Daily Gatha
Picking up the mail from the floor I vow with all beings To open and read each personal letter With calm appreciation
The Great Secret of Life (It’s That Simple)
Placing my order at Cafe Ventana Chatting with the uber-exuberant manager Jennifer She says to me quite casually “I was in family law for two years Never made anyone happy And I wasn’t happy Now…
Good News
My good news is I’m still employed My good news is I have loads of work that isn’t for pay My good news is I get to meet ordinary, fascinating people like the ones at…