Blasts from the Past
Hold It All It must have been 1983, springtime: I asked former classmate Ray Pruitt what he’d been reading. “Last night, Kierkegaard, Proust, and Phil Berrigan.” Things Have Changed It was back in 1982 We…
Students/1
We Know In that spring semester courseThere were 40 studentsThe official limit was 35But I let more in Before starting The Book of MevI asked“How many of youHave known someone— A family memberA friend, a…
Travelers
Wishing You an Un-Great Experience Now that you’re headed to _________ And people are wishing that you’ll have a “great” experience I hope you have a un-“great” experience If “great” means photo-ops Looking good with…
Huzzah!/1
Dear Safety by Cami Kasmerchak I want nothing to do with you. I throw off your constrictive, binding shackles in order to pursue a fuller life. A life worth living. A life worth losing. I…
“Olympian, Philosophical, Seamless, and All-Encompassing”
Edmund White, Marcel Proust Saturday 29 May 1999 Cullings A captivating, informed, discerning, spirited little biography, one could say that it is a bio of the gay Proust, as the author makes frequent reference to…
Solidaridad/1
In the mid-1980s while working at St. William Church in Louisville, I was involved with the Sanctuary Movement. The church offered hospitality to a couple from El Salvador, Manuel and Maria Elena. They were the…
Writing Our Own Histories: A Fall Class
This is the second time this year I am facilitating a course on this do-it-yourself theme, which comes from Allen Ginsberg, “You have to write your own history, nobody’s going to do it for you.“…
Mentshes/1
Dear Shannon, I enjoyed our long conversation on Saturday afternoon at 6 North Coffee. I appreciate you taking the time to visit on such a busy weekend. After our chats, the strong impression I am…
Share the Wealth with Magan Wiles: Decolonizing Tango
Three days after the video of George Floyd’s murder went viral, I saw a video on Facebook of my friend Jay standing at a busy intersection in LA, holding up a sign that said “where…
A Youth
The Daily Mailby Hedy Epstein In those first years of the Nazi regime, it was hard for me to grasp the import of politics writ large. However, I would soon come face to face…