Unfortunately, I’ve unexpectedly had to take some time off from regular posts and updates, but here today is an invitation/reminder to join us – The Bardo Group Bequines – at The BeZine for 100,000 Poets (and other artists and friends) for Change (100TPC): on September 15th for the Zine and on September 24th for the 100TPC virtual event, which is celebrated from our blog. The themes for both are Environment and Environmental Justice.
Michael Dickelis the Master of Ceremonies for our 100TPC virtual event.
These are worthy efforts to:
help steer public discourse in a productive direction,
define issues and suggest possible solutions,
encourage consensus for the environmental and social good, and
connect people and raise the general consciousness.
Please do participate. All work will be archived on site and at Stanford University.
Zine submissions should be sent to bardogroup@gmail.com. Please read submission guidelines first. The deadline is September 10th.
Reader participation on the 24th for the virtual event is by way of the comments section or Mister Linkey. Michael will provide direction in his blog-post that day.
Also of note, Michael Rothenberg, cofounder of the 100TPC global initiative, reminds everyone today that it is not too late to register as an organizer of an event. While ours is a virtual event, people all over the world in 120 countries to date are sponsoring events in homes, schools, places of worship, cafés and restaurants, parks, community centers and other sites where people gather. Link HERE to register.
By way of warm-up, this Wednesday and next, I’ll post prompts on The Poet by Day related to the themes.
In the Spirit of Peace, Love and Community
and on behalf of The Bardo Group Beguines, Jamie
When I remember you
I remember the amber moon
and the burnished brown of old oaks,
their leaves like hands waving goodbye
Summertime, as dusk transitioned to dark,
we’d sit on the beach by slow cooking-fires,
their coals gone from hard black to gray dust
I cherished your warm hug in the chill of the night
and falling asleep, safe
I stopped loving you,
but I never stopped loving the memory of you
I carry that with me on lunatic trips of the heart ~
though my preference is to rest solitary on forest logs
with their stunning imperfections and those
secret-lives swirling in the sunless damp on which they rest
I think of the path that led from then to now,
a mix of smooth and rough along a rocky coast ~
I live near the sea to breathe
I imagine you living, wherever you are –
by an ocean with your skin still smelling of Old Spice,
with your well-formed hands, the hands of a pianist and surgeon,
and the high-tensile strength of your mind
In the odd geography of life, no one knows where we came from
or how it was, how it felt to be us in the days of promise
when the spell of Hudson Bay fell like a prayer to St. Christopher
That bay is no longer our safe harbor,
but it gave us our sturdy roots and strong wings
and so the nights, the nights by this bay are good
When I smile at the amber moon, it smiles at you
– Jamie Dedes
WRITING PROMPT
Unfortunately first loves aren’t everyone’s happiest memory. Nonetheless, they often are good experiences from which to write. Write an epistolary poem or prose piece that tells the story of your first love from the perspective of time and expresses how you feel today about that experience and that person.
Hollie Poetry a.k.a. Hollie McNish, poet, author and spoken word artist
“Born in Reading to Glaswegian parents, Hollie studied French and German at King’s College, Cambridge, before earning a master’s degree in Development Economics.Hollie won the UK Slam Poetry Competition in 2009 and went on to finish 3rd in the global Slam Du Monde contest. A collection of her poems, Papers was published by Greenwich Exchange in 2012.
“A number of Hollie’s YouTube videos have gone viral and her account currently has over 3.9 million views.McNish’s first album, Versus, was released in September 2014 under the pseudonym Hollie Poetry, she was the first poet to record an album at Abbey Road Studios.Hollie has collaborated with Kate Tempest and George the Poet and they have appeared on stage with her during her 2015 tour. McNish received major national airplay on the BBC, first in January 2015 on Huw Stephens BBC Radio 1 show and then in May 2015 on BBC Radio 1Xtra in as part of a spoken word event.” Wikipedia
Embarrassed
I thought it was okay, I could understand the reasons
They said, “There might
be a man or a nervous child
seeing this small piece of flesh that they
weren’t quite expecting.”
So I whispered and tip-toed with nervous discretion
But after six months of her life sat sitting on lids,
sipping on milk, nostrils sniffing on piss
Trying not to bang her head on toilet roll dispensers
I wonder whether these public loo feeds offend her
‘Cause I’m getting tired of discretion and being polite
As my baby’s first sips are drowned drenched in shite
I spent the first feeding months of her beautiful life
Feeling nervous and awkward and wanting everything right
Surrounded by family ‘til I stepped out the house
It took me eight weeks to get the confidence to go into town
Now, the comments around me cut like a knife
As I rush into toilet cubicles
feeling nothing like nice
Because I’m giving her milk that’s not in a bottle
Which in the cocaine generation white powder would topple
I see pyramids, sales pitches, across our green globe
And female breasts–banned–unless they’re out just for show
And the more I go out, the more I can’t stand it
I walk into town, feel I’m surrounded by bandits
‘Cause in this country of billboards, covered in tits
And family newsagent magazines full of it
WH Smith top shelf’s out for men
Why don’t you complain about them then?
In this country of billboards, covered in tits
And family newsagent magazines full of it
W.H. Smith top shelves out for men
I’m getting embarrassed in case
a small flash of flesh might offend
And I’m not trying to parade it
I don’t want to make a show
But when I’m told I’d be better just staying at home
And when another friend
I know is thrown off a bus
And another mother told to get out of a pub
Even my grandma said that maybe I was sexing it up
And I’m sure the milk-makers love all this fuss
All the cussing, and worry, and looks of disgust
As another mother turns from nipples to powder
Ashamed or embarrassed by the comments around her
And as I hold her head up and pull my cartie across
And she sips on that liquor made from everyone’s God
I think, For God’s sake, Jesus drank it
So did Siddhartha, Muhammad, and Moses
And both of their fathers
Ganesh, and Shiva and Brigit and Buddha
And I’m sure they weren’t doing it sniffing on piss
As their mothers sat embarrassed sitting on cold toilet lids
In a country of billboards covered in tits
In a country of low-cut tops cleavage and skin
In a country of clothed bags and recycling bins
And as I desperately try to take all of this in
I hold her head up, I can’t get my head round the anger
Towards us and not to the sound of lorries
Off-loading formula milk
Into countries dripping in filth
In towns where breasts are oases of life
Now dried up in two-for-one offers enticed by labels, and gold standard rights
Claiming that breast milk is healthier, powdered and white
Packaged marketed and branded and sold at a price
That nothing is free in this money-fueled life
Which is fine if you need it or prefer to use bottles
Where water is clean and bacteria boiled
But in towns where they drown in pollution and sewage
Bottled kids die and they know that they do it
In towns where pennies are savored like sweets
We’re now paying for one thing that’s always been free
In towns empty of hospital beds, babies die,
Diarrhea-fueled, that breastmilk would end
So no more will I sit on these cold toilet lids
No matter how embarrassed I feel as she sips
Because in this country of billboards, covered in tits
I think we should try to get used to this
ARTSPACE “invites poets working in all genres of poetry to apply to be considered for our Opening Poems project.Through this project, Artspace seeks to commission original poems written in response to one or more images and/or works in our exhibitions opening between fall 2016 and spring 2018. Poets both emerging and established, based in New Haven or out-of-state are invited to submit. Selected poets will collaborate with artists and curators, study the works and themes of planned future exhibitions, and reflect on the ideas embodied in each show. Poets will then read, perform, or otherwise present a new poem at one of Artspace’s highly attended opening receptions, using the gallery as a lab for physical and visual exploration of language.
“This opportunity offers the chance to build an open, interdisciplinary, and expanded dialogue around your work and gain exposure to Artspace’s expansive network of local and international connections, as well as those of our featured artists. Your piece will also be published in the Opening Poems chapbook, to be produced at the conclusion of the project, containing each poem presented at the opening receptions alongside the artwork that inspired it.” Submission deadline: Friday, Jun 30, 2017 at 12:00 AM Details HERE.
NEW MADRID, Journal of Contemporary LiteratureWinter 2017 Theme: “Imagining Peace” We seek work that speaks to this arduousness and that defines peace not just as the absence of war, but as something dynamic in its own right. All literary genres are welcome, and submissions should be of interest to the general reader. Please do not submit scholarly articles. . . . New Madrid is published twice per year, during the July and January residencies of Murray State University’s low-residency MFA Program. The editors invite previously unpublished submissions of poetry, fiction, and creative nonfiction. Acceptance is determined by the quality of the work.” Current reading period ends October 15. Details HERE.
WALLOON WRITERS REVIEW “is an independent literary journal rooted in Northern Michigan. Our mission is to provide an avenue for writers and photographers to share their passion and their art with the community. We are proud to remind everyone that our 2nd Edition Deadline is September 5th. Our theme is Northern Michigan – but that doesn’t mean you have to live in Northern Michigan…just keep that common thread in your work. Maybe you are here for the summer, maybe you just drove through for the first time. It’s inspiring and the creativity the natural surroundings bring forth needs a place to go… ” Details HERE.
JSTOR.ORG is “looking for pitches for 1500-2000-word features on timely topics that are in conversation with and reference (with direct links to) the content housed on JSTOR.org. We’re also particularly interested in acquiring interviews with scholars whose work is housed on JSTOR. Prospective writers should send links to clips of their previously published writing, as well as a well-developed pitches for one story idea that includes potential tie-ins to specific JSTOR content. Writers who need it will be given access to the JSTOR library for research purposes. Features should: draw connections between the news, the Zeitgeist(s), and JSTOR research identify patterns between current events and scholarly work provide the backstory for new studies and point out historial studies that should be revisited
not feel academic or like work interview researchers and scholars who are doing interesting work that is housed in JSTOR, or researchers who are using JSTOR in interesting ways.” Details HERE.
HEART OF STEEL — LGBTQIA — “Knights are a well-established presence in the fiction landscape, from historical fiction to fantasy to romance. Be they chivalrous or ruthless, high or low born, noble warriors or dishonored soldiers, tales of knights are endlessly appealing—for their loyalty, their love, and all that they will do to serve and protect those to whom they are sworn. Less Than Three Press invites you to submit stories about knights and all they are willing to do and endure for the sake of those they love and protect. Editor’s note: We would like for this anthology to cover the full range of the spectrum. While all stories will be considered, preference will be given to stories featuring characters that are not cis-gay.”Deadline is September 30, 2016 Details HERE.
CHICKEN SOUP FOR THE SOUL Best Mom Ever! “Is your mother the best mom ever? How about your stepmother, grandmother, or mother-in-law? How about the wonderful woman who is raising your children? Share your stories about the amazing, loving, miraculous, intuitive, and just plain fabulous moms in your life. Here is your chance to let all the moms know they are appreciated, loved and respected, and that you can’t imagine anyone better. We’re looking for stories about moms of all ages, from young mothers to great-grandmothers, and everything in between. Let your mom or grandmother or stepmother or the mother of your children know that her hard work has been recognized and that without her, the kids wouldn’t be where they are today”. Deadline September 30, 2016. Details HERE.
CANTHIUS “accepts submissions of poetry and prose from a diversity of established and emerging women and genderqueer writers. For those who wish to submit to Canthius, we ask that your submission reflect the best of your creativity, your voice, your humour, your intelligence, your strength. Be political, honest, witty. We thank you for considering us as a forum for your work and for engaging, reading, and writing about feminist issues and experiences.” Deadline September 15, 2016. DetailsHERE.
EVENTS
BRISTOL POETRY FESTIVAL 2016 has these poets booked so far: Gillian Clarke with Penelope Shuttle, John Greening and Alison Brackenbury; Matthew Caley with David Briggs, Rachael Boast and Rosie Jackson; Helen Mort with Deborah Harvey and friends; The Magnetic Diaries with Vey Streker; The Bristol Poetry Festival Slam; a Can Openers Festival Special and festival aperatifs include Keys, Chords and Uncommonplaces with Ash Dickinson, David C Johnson and Beth Porter.” September 27 – October 15. Details HERE.
LAUNCHES
THE WARP AND WEFT OF THINGS – Poet Sharon Frye (featured HERE) announced this anthology today. It is “put together from the minds of the Enid Writers Club” and includes poetry, memoirs, short stories, flash fiction and more. Available from Amazon HERE.
LIFE IN SUSPENSION (Salmon Poetry, 2016) – La Vie Suspendue (English and French Edition) – Poet, actress and educator Hélène Cardona announced the publication of her bilingual poetry collection. Available from Amazon HERE.
Hélène Cardona reads from her book, The Astonished Universe:
If you are reading this post in email, you will likely have to link through to view the video.
THE POET BY DAY SUNDAY POESY
Submit your event, book launch and other announcements at least fourteen days in advance to thepoetbyday@gmail.com. Publication is subject to editorial discretion.
Jamie Dedes' THE POET BY DAY Webzine 