Contemporary Poetry

Turn a poem in your hand and the poem flows in a gentle reading animation. The effect is magical, mesmeric, and revealing. You see the poem differently as it quietly reads itself to you. You get 20 great poems to keep and share, and additional poems cost less than a penny a poem.

"It's true. Richard Jackson's underground river beneath the Nile is six times bigger. Many small rivers joined it (him) and empowered his voice. Yes, he does this to his peers. You, tender, wise, wounded, generous and responsible child, your melody is unmistakably only yours. Have you eaten us? Do we flow too?" -- Tomaz Šalamun

The Meacham Writers' Workshop is supported primarily by an endowment funded by the late Jean Meacham in honor of her husband, Ellis K. Meacham. Occurring each fall and spring, the workshop is free and open to the public; there is no registration. The program consists of readings, discussion sessions, and group conferences. The philosophy of the workshop is to provide support but also honest and direct criticism for developing writers.

It's because the earth continues to wobble on its axis that we continue to stumble down the streets of the heart. It's because of the loneliness of the first cell trying to swim through its primordial pool that we are filled with a kind of galactic fear. For example: one moment a rocket falls capriciously into a square. Another moment, a rogue wave turns over the fishing boat whose crew leaves their memories floating like an oil slick that never reaches shore.

Everyone loves a story. Let's begin with a house. We can fill it with careful rooms and fill the rooms with things-tables, chairs, cupboards, drawers closed to hide tiny beds where children once slept or big drawers that yawn open to reveal....

Poetry Foundation announces Poetry Learning Lab

Welcome to the Geraldine R Dodge Foundations YouTube channel where you can see video highlights from past. Dodge Foundation Poetry Festivals, some of which have been featured on PBS. Over the years a remarkable group of poets from around the world has read to enthusiastic audiences and discussed a broad range of topics related to poetry. These topics have included: the life of the artist, the nature of the art, and poetrys relation to many other aspects of life ― from politics, class, and race to spirituality and the environment.

Taylor Mali's teacher poem at 5:25 on the video is worth hearing: http://tinyurl.com/6222qn

I watched those leaves lost in their own worlds flap on the pins of the bulletin boards: without branches or roots, or even a sky to hold on to.