Practice To weep unbidden, to wake at night in order to weep, to wait for the whisker on the face … More
Tag: Lifesaving Poems
Any Common Desolation
Any Common Desolation can be enough to make you look upat the yellowed leaves of the apple tree, the fewthat … More
Another Loss to Stop For
Another Loss to Stop For Against such cold and mercurial mornings, watch the wind whirl one leaf across … More
Empathy and New Year
Empathy and New Year A notion like that of empathy inspires great distrust in us, because it connotes a further … More
‘Clear of the wheel of myself’: Workshopping Michael Laskey’s ‘Bike’
Bike You, who have borne three sons of mine, still bear my weight routinely, transporting me. An odd … More
A new Archive page
Today I have published a new Archive page on this blog. It contains links to all of the blog posts … More
Lifesaving poems of summer
As the summer holiday season takes hold, I am posting an old blog post or two from the archive. See … More
Happy James Schuyler Day
To celebrate what I now think of as James Schuyler day, I am reposting June 30, 1974. Happy … More
and (Dear James)
and (Dear James) it occurs to me now, just thinking out loud, that in a way Kenneth and Frank … More
Who is your go-to poet?
I’ve been thinking a lot recently about the ‘poets I go back to’ idea, that I first came across in … More
Open letter to James Schuyler
Dear James (may I call you James?) Though it’s been a while (at least ten years, maybe more) it feels as … More
Writing prompts (blog post ending with a line by Shawna Lemay) (LentBlog29)
after Shawna Lemay Write a poem about the rain. Or the wind. Write about what you learned at university. … More
Why we need to save the Poetry Business (LentBlog26)
after Mark Halliday Because of the writing days. And because The discovery will not happen on its own, unprompted, … More
Meditation on a line by Martin Stannard (LentBlog2)
A line that has really been haunting me recently is ‘Horses turned out into a cold field have it’ from … More
Lifesaving Poems: C. P. Cavafy’s ‘Waiting for the Barbarians’
Waiting for the Barbarians What are we waiting for, assembled in the forum? The barbarians are due here today. … More
Lifesaving Poems: Philip Larkin’s ‘Going’
Going There is an evening coming in Across the fields, one never seen before, That lights no lamps. Silken … More
Dancing with me in my kitchen
I am deeply honoured to have my poem When The Holy Spirit Danced With Me In My Kitchen used as a … More
Craving silence
‘So I was thinking,’ the book says. ‘Going anywhere nice for Christmas?’ ’Do you want a lift somewhere?’ I say. … More