Thanks to the Massachusetts Poetry Festival for sponsoring our reading of Alzheimer’s Poems.
I read with some amazing poets: Gail Thomas, Christine Jones and Eric Hyatt. It was a great experience!
I’ll be blogging on Thursdays. Follow me here.
I have the pleasure of reading with Eric Hyett, as well as Gail Thomas, and Christine Jonesat this workshop called “Now As Mother: In the Presence of Loved Ones With Alzheimer’s” at 11:30 am May 6 at the 2023 Massachusetts Poetry Festival.
According to the National Institute on Aging, Alzheimer’s is a brain disorder that slowly destroys memory and thinking skills, and it’s estimated that over six million Americans struggle with dementia as a result. To be in the presence of someone with Alzheimer’s is a lesson in appreciating the very present moment because both the past and future are unattainable to those individuals inflicted. As caregivers, we try to hold this space. As poets, we turn to language to help undertand and accept. In this group reading, followed by a Q&A, we’ll read our poetry and discuss our own experiences caring for a loved with Alzheimer’s disease.
Come and join us in Salem, Massachusetts at 11:30 am on Saturday, May 6. https://masspoetryfest2023.sched.com/?utm_medium=email&utm_source=admins&utm_campaign=global-password_reset-A&utm_content=header-link
Eric is a wonderful poet and translator. Here is his profile: Eric Hyett is a poet and Japanese translator from Brookline, Massachusetts. His first book of poetry, “Aporia,” was published in 2022 (Lily Poetry Review Books). With Spencer Thurlow, Eric co-translated “Sonic Peace,” by contemporary Japanese female poet Kiriu Minashita, (Phoneme Media, 2017) which was shortlisted for the 2018 National Translation Award. Eric and Spencer’s award-winning translation of “Is It Poetry” by Toshiko Hirata is forthcoming from Deep Vellum Publishing in August, 2023. Eric’s poems, essays and translations are part of the dialogue in Granta, The Georgia Review, Lily Poetry Review, The Hudson Review, World Literature Today and Modern
I have the pleasure of reading with Eric Heatt, as well as Gail Thomas, and Christine Jonesat this workshop called “Now As Mother: In the Presence of Loved Ones With Alzheimer’s” at 11:30 am at the 2023 Massachusetts Poetry Festival.
According to the National Institute on Aging, Alzheimer’s is a brain disorder that slowly destroys memory and thinking skills, and it’s estimated that over six million Americans struggle with dementia as a result. To be in the presence of someone with Alzheimer’s is a lesson in appreciating the very present moment because both the past and future are unattainable to those individuals inflicted. As caregivers, we try to hold this space. As poets, we turn to language to help undertand and accept. In this group reading, followed by a Q&A, we’ll read our poetry and discuss our own experiences caring for a loved with Alzheimer’s disease.
Come and join us in Salem, Massachusetts at 11:30 am on Saturday, May 6. https://masspoetryfest2023.sched.com/?utm_medium=email&utm_source=admins&utm_campaign=global-password_reset-A&utm_content=header-link
Māori Woman by Irene Christensen
Māori Woman
She weaves her fate carefully.
Bone and ancient music guide
her face marks to solemnize her ancestors
and move forward with tomorrow.
The karaka tree soothes the symbols with its balm
mending as the woman heals.
She creates wananga to enhance her knowledge.
Mystical memory grows awareness.
About the Poet
Eileen P. Kennedy is the author of two collections of poetry: Banshees (Flutter Press, 2015), which was nominated for a Pushcart Prize and won Second Prize in Poetry from the Wordwrite Book Awards, and Touch My Head Softly (Finishing Line Press, 2021) which Literary Titan has described as “emotionally-charged poetry that explores life with observant poems that will appeal to anyone who loves inspired poetry.” It was a finalist for the International Book Awards in General Poetry. She lives in Amherst, MA with the ghost of Emily Dickinson. More at www.EileenPKennedy.com.
About the Artist
Irene Christensen’s art is about painting as a magical act. Her images repeat and are transformed, as words and images in poems. She likes to maintain a sense of wonder in her art. That life is strange and quirky, and contradictory, that tragedy and comedy are not played out in separate theaters, but co-exist, side by side. More at ireneartster.wordpress.com
I Feel Close to Nature Too
I feel close to nature too
earth moves in the hot sky
green leaves grow my hair
mountains erupt my skin
when you step on me I cry
I feel close to nature too
my eyes wash blue seashells
my face erodes sand from the shore
ground has no home for living
suffocating in a polluted candy corn sky
I feel close to nature too
writhing, dying in the heat
a red leaf dragon swallows
the trees growing in the night forest
I must preserve the charging planet beast
I feel close to nature too
About the Poet
Eileen P. Kennedy is the author of two collections of poetry: Banshees (Flutter Press, 2015), which was nominated for a Pushcart Prize and won Second Prize in Poetry from the Wordwrite Book Awards, and Touch My Head Softly (Finishing Line Press, 2021) which Literary Titan has described as “emotionally-charged poetry that explores life with observant poems that will appeal to anyone who loves inspired poetry.” It was a finalist for the International Book Awards in General Poetry. She lives in Amherst, MA with the ghost of Emily Dickinson. More at www.EileenPKennedy.om.
About the Artist
Irene Christensen’s art is about painting as a magical act. Her images repeat and are transformed, as words and images in poems. She likes to maintain a sense of wonder in her art. That life is strange and quirky, and contradictory, that tragedy and comedy are not played out in separate theaters, but co-exist, side by side. More at ireneartster.wordpress.com
Check out the poems on Starry Starry Kite https://www.lindacastronovo.com/theonlinejournal
Writers write in isolation mostly. This can be both challenging and rewarding. Sometimes it’s in small groups or workshops, but mostly alone. Sometimes I wait until the last minute to write what I want? Why?
In the end, I try to listen to my inner voice that speaks my true thoughts that ultimately helps me cut through the nonsense that sometimes enters into my writing. Good writing comes from the true self.
I use different methods to get in touch with my inner self. I meditate, move to a coffee shop or library, read a book of an author who is writing something similar to my project. Sometimes just sit quietly.
Join me in imagining and getting in touch with your inner self. Try writing from that one true voice.
If you’re writing in isolation, it’s probably because you love the craft, because you can’t not write. Sometimes this is in a group, or a library, or a coffee shop, but mostly it’s in isolation.
I’ll continue to blog on Thursdays. If you’d like me to make an announcement for an upcoming reading, publication or award, get in touch with me here.
Around this time last Spring, I was looking at signs of renewal and planting herbs and vegetables at my New England home.
This renewal follows me into my writing study where I sit at a big desk. The steadiness of the land and muted tones of the spring exude a calmness. I am ready to sit down and write.
I spent this winter, and many past winters, in different parts of Central America: Costa Rica, Cuba, Nicaragua, Mexico and Panama. This is a type of infusion of new experiences, different language, cultures, and places. The sun is bright and the colors are bold. In Costa Rica, I have a big porch that faces the mountains and I write outside.
So this Spring I strive to combine both my worlds, the stimulation of the sights and colors of Central America, with the slow, steady unfurling of Spring in the Northeast. It’s good to add new experiences to the consistency of my writing process. How do you stimulate your writing process?
I will be writing on Thursdays and posting literary events on that day. Follow me here at WordPress.
Many writers are also meditators. Some even write about the relationship between writing and mediation. I am a meditator and a writer. I meditate in the morning and write in the morning. I also practice yoga. To me, these are all intertwin
The U.S. alone has an estimated 36 million yoga practitioners. It has adapted to local socio-political and cultural norms world over so much so that it can hardly be called an Indian custom. Yoga originated in India. The system of yoga has physical, mental, and emotional dimensions in addition to spiritual underpinnings. But yoga is not a religion. It has no dogma. But the practice for me is essential to my writing and brings me to a place where I can write truth.
Meditation helps improve focus. Something essential for the good writer. I began meditating years ago with a meditation method popular at that time, Transcendental Meditation. Maharishi Mahesh Yogi developed this mantric method of meditation in the 50’s in India, and it spread widely throughout the world. For me, it was a good place to learn the technique, but my meditation practice evolved when I combined meditation with yoga, especially Kundalini. Kundalini is a spiritual energy or life force located at the base of the spine, conceptualized as a coiled serpent. It didn’t matter which type of meditation I was using, as long as it focused my mind and enabled me to write from that place.
Meditation provides a safe space to be. Meditation slows the world down to make room for creative thought and exploration. It’s an ideal practice for the writer or artist.
Have you had experiences with writing and meditation?
I will be blogging on Thursdays, with occasional literary announcements, but I’m taking a few Thursdays off. Follow me here on WordPress.
The Art Exhibit “Allusions,” with Opening Reception today, will feature Norwegian artist, Irene Christensen’s paintings, “Metamorphosis,” and “Maori Woman” with the poems of the same name by Eileen P. Kennedy.
Viridian is pleased to present an exhibit by artists who are part of Viridian Artists’ Affiliate Program including, in addition to Irene Christensen, Zoe Brown-Weissmann, Joshua Greenberg, Miho Hiranouchi, Vernita N’Cognita, Nancy Nice, Sarah Riley and Kathleen Shanahan.
“Allusions” is art filled with allusion to the artists’ and the viewer’s realities. Allusions are more real than illusions for they are an interpretation of reality…a hint of what it might be.
“Allusions” will run until February 25th. The Gallery is open Tuesday – Saturday from 12 to 6 pm and by appointment.
Writers write in isolation mostly. Sometimes it’s in small groups or workshops, but mostly alone. Sometimes I wait until the last minute to write what I want? Why?
In the end, I try to listen to my inner voice that speaks my true thoughts that ultimately helps me cut through the nonsense that sometimes enters into my writing. Good writing comes from the true self.
I am currently in Costa Rica, where I usually spend my winters. This is a Costa Rican flower that grows around where I live. I do the big push for my writing during this time. I’m currently working on a series of Ekphrastic Poems based on the work of Irene Christensen, a Norwegian artist, on Women and Nature.
I also read writers who I feel write from their inner selves. I’m currently reading Joy Harry’s “Catching the Light” about her inner process for developing poetry.
I use different methods to get in touch with my inner self. I meditate, move to a coffee shop or library, read a book of an author who is writing something similar to my project. Sometimes just sit quietly.
Join me in imagining and getting in touch with your inner self. Try writing from that one true voice.
I’ll continue to blog on Thursdays. If you’d like me to make an announcement for an upcoming reading, publication or award, get in touch with me here.
Eileen P. Kennedy Author 