poems

Look Up and Stars Will Shake the Everyday (Upstate Diary, Mei-mei Berssenbrugge, Neil deGrasse Tyson)

At the ever-illuminating @upstate_diary, we suddenly found ourselves looking up through wintry trees into a vast moving star-scape. It transported us to a chilly night in the country. It led to reminders of cosmic views of the everyday.

The Liberations of Long-Handled Paint Brushes, and Art Paired with Poetry

A favorite instagram is gallerist Brett Gorvy’s, which pairs an artist and his/her work with a poem. It makes for a powerful dose of illumination. Take this sublime photograph by the great photojournalist Harry Benson*, of a young Brice Marden painting with a long-handled brush, illuminated, as if by fireworks, by a poem by Margaret Atwood. Perfection. Which got us thinking about that amazing brush…

A Poet Defines a ‘Blessing’ (John O’Donohue)

For a long time, I was hard-pressed to find a good definition of “blessing” that encompassed its quality of kindness, possibiity and transformative power without referencing formal religion. I found it in ‘To Bless the Space Between Us’ by poet John O’Donohue, and in one of his exquisite blessings.

Tent as Artist’s Canvas Sparks Mary Oliver

Spotted at artist Izhar Patkin’s instagram: the tent he has on his New York roof deck with an interior painted by Scooter LaForge. We can imagine hiding out in its dreamy magic… A fragment of a Mary Oliver poem comes to mind:

We Savor the Last Tomatoes of Summer (Neruda with Recipes)

In late September, as cool weather creeps in, I become aware that the waning moments of summer tomatoes are imminent. I hunger for a last bit of lusciousness that only food in its season can convey. I pick out some “real” tomatoes at the farmer’s market to savor the perfect, simple way I learned from my friend Anthony Giglio, and to preserve for winter enjoyment. And I read Pablo Neruda’s ode.

Today We Are Possible (Lucille Clifton)

I don’t remember where I came across this perfect, short poem by Lucille Clifton, only that it had the effect that Emily Dickinson said made her know something is poetry…

Heading for Deep Analog, We’ll Be Back in September

We’ve suddenly realized that we’re heading into the home stretch of summer, with September in the too-near distance, and feel, well, we really need to STOP. We are world-weary, still. So we’re heading OUT, to immerse ourselves in deep analog.

Mindset for a Heatwave (Martha & the Vandelas, Hermeto Pascoa, Francis Alys, Li Po, Ellen Silverman)

As many parts of the country, and the world, are in the grip of a fearsome heatwave, We’ve found ourselves hiding out, working at partial power, desperately needing restorative naps and ways to feel cool. We know that refreshing virtual pleasures CAN help us cope; they fuel breezes in our heads. So we rounded up our favorites.

We Played with John Cage’s 12 Words and Blasted Open Our Heads

Artist, composer John Cage was also a remarkably powerful writer. Over years of reading him we’ve found ourself transformed by even a sentence or two. This one landed in a similar way……We found that shifting the flow of words ever-so-slightly had a surprising effect.

The Secret Essential Riches of Doing Nothing (Jenny Odell, Bibi Baskin, Ch’eng Hao)

When uber-journalist Bibi Baskin was asked what she planned to be doing when she retired she replied, “Nothing.” It is a pursuit she has longed for. Still it is not always easy to do given the fierce demands of a society that values productivity above most else.

Firefly Season Arrives After a Hard Year, with Haiku

Seeing a single firefly in a field in New York City sparked several haiku, and coincided with astonishing research on the magical insect.

Meditative Retreats Among the Bees via Erika Thompson and Pablo Neruda

Texas Beeworks‘ Erika Thompson’s videos have become a sensation, documenting her adventures calmly moving whole colonies of bees out of hives that that have formed in the midst of people’s lives: under a pool umbrella, in a patio chair, an old tire, a water meter, compost bin, the walls of a house. They are mesmerizing to watch as much for the view into the workings of wild hives as for Thompson’s relaxed, fearless self-assurance.

Summer Outdoor Rug Thing

Every time I see this photograph of a garden festooned with vintage rugs, I want to beam myself there Star Trek-style and lounge, reading, drinking tea, napping, with friends or alone. It reminds me of Morocco where the hot, dry weather encourages making outdoor environments with rugs. We can create them too. at least for a party’s worth of hours.

Thoughts on Miracles (Charlie Allenson, Walt Whitman, Mary Oliver, Cosmos)

A while back, we posted “Let’s Save Charlie’s Life”, about our friend Charlie Allenson who needed a kidney transplant to save his life, Charlie got his transplant through an anonymous donor touched by one of the messages asking for help that Charlie’s many friends and colleagues sent out via social media. It got us thinking about miracles, and we found insight from Whitman, Mary Oliver, and Charlie himself.

Ways to Honor The Mother Trees (Susan Simard, W.S. Merwin)

We have marveled at Susan Simard since we realized she was the model for the fearless, hermetic tree botanist in Richard Price’s wondrous tree-centric novel The Overstory. Her new book Finding the Mother Tree: Discovering the Ancient Wisdom of the Forest about the intricate underground communication network trees create and depend upon got us thinking about the perfect gift, for Mother’s day or otherwise.

The Complex Meanings of ‘Languishing’ (Jenny Holzer, Ada Limon, Cesaria Evora…)

“Languishing” perfectly describes the unsettling emotional state so many of us find ourselves in a solid year into the pandemic. We looked deeper into its meaning, and found insight in art, music, poetry…

Listen to a Breathtaking Treatise on Stars (Mei-mei Berssenbrugge + Vija Celmins)

One morning, I found myself listening to poet Mei-mei Berssenbrugge reading Wonder from her book A Treatise on Stars. I was transfixed, calmed, transported by her voice and the story it told. It proved a surprising lesson in seeing stars, and the connection between wonder and not knowing.

A Password Strategy That Employs Poetry and Prose

The chart of data sourced from HowSecureIsMyPassword.net shows just how quickly a hacker can brute-force various kinds of passwords, especially the weak grandkid’s-names-type that many people think up. Then there’s THIS solution for making unhackable, easy-to-remember passwords.

Lesson for an Open Heart

After an extended pause from Improvised Life seeing my friend through open heart surgery, all is well. The surgery was successful, and my friend is slowly recovering. Through weeks of ICU and the unpredictable processes of healing, we have felt the powerful effect of the simplest of things: Kindness.

With Poetry as Balm for Dire Straits, We Are Taking Time Off (Mary Oliver, Su Tung p’o)

This week, my dearest friend will have open-heart surgery, a territory whose outcomes and demands defy prediction. So I will be taking time off from writing Improvised Life. But I will be carrying its lessons with me as I navigate waiting, hospital, ICU…

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