Friday, January 31, 2014

The February 2014 Issue of Songs of Eretz Poetry E-zine Is Available for Viewing

Dear Friends of Eretz,

The February 2014 issue (Volume 1, Issue 4) of Songs of Eretz Poetry E-zine is available for viewing.  Simply click on the "Ezine Latest Issue" tab in the brown area below the daily blog posts, and enjoy.

Kind regards,

Steven Wittenberg Gordon, MD
Editor

PS:  Looking for previous issues?  Simply click on the "E-zine Archive" tab.

New Showcase Story: "Songs of Stone"

Dear Friends of Eretz,

A thank you goes out to all of you who enjoyed reading and commented upon the most recent Showcase story, "High Noon in Kirojo."  It is your patronage that keeps the Showcase going.

The first third of a new story is now in the Showcase:  "Songs of Stone."  This story takes place in the fantasy world of Eretz and features Danule the Balladeer.  I hope you will enjoy it.

Kind regards,

Steven Wittenberg Gordon, MD
Editor

Review of "Today a Rainstorm Caught Me" by Matt Hart

"Today a Rainstorm Caught Me" by Matt Hart, a teacher at the Art Academy of Cincinnati, was offered by Poets.org's Poem-A-Day on January 31, 2014.  A link to the poem, including the poet's notes, may be found here:

http://www.poets.org/viewmedia.php/prmMID/23849?utm_source=PAD%3A+Today+a+Rainstorm+Caught+Me+by+Matt+Hart&utm_campaign=poemaday_013114&utm_medium=email

Additional biographical information about Matt Hart may be found here:  http://www.versedaily.org/2012/aboutmatthartcpr.shtml.

The poet reveals in his notes that he composed this poem while caught in a rainstorm, darting from temporary shelter to temporary shelter, and hoping that his computer would not get wet.  There is a definite disjointedness to this poem, sometimes indicated by blank spaces within lines and hyphenated words.


Thursday, January 30, 2014

Review of "A Book of Music" by Jack Spicer

"A Book of Music" by Jack Spicer was offered by Poets.org's Poem-A-Day on January 30, 2014, the anniversary of his birth.  A link to the poem may be found here:  http://scienceblogs.com/purepedantry/2008/01/21/a-good-poem-a-book-of-music-by/.

Jack Spicer (1925 - 1965) (pictured) was a co-founder of the Berkley Renaissance Movement and inspired the Beat Movement.  He referred to his poetic style as "poetry as dictation," by which he meant that a poet is no more than a "radio" able to receive transmissions of poetry from an "invisible world," as opposed to composing poetry through his own will and intellect--a rather humbling thought!  Also, a bit schizophrenic!  He suffered from chronic alcoholism and depression which resulted in the loss of job after job and friend after friend.  He died just as his life appeared to be turning around with the success of his famous "Vancouver Lectures."  Additional biographical information may be found here:

http://www.poets.org/poet.php/prmPID/1656?utm_source=PAD%3A+A+Book+Of+Music+by+Jack+Spicer&utm_campaign=poemaday_013014&utm_medium=email

The title of the poem refers to music, an art form that has rhythm and often passion--just like poetry and sex.  The first line is an obvious double entendre.  The second line compares the sexual act to swimming.

In the middle of the poem, Spicer introduces rope as a metaphor for the sexual act and perhaps the male sex organ.  The poem's ending is as twisted as the rope that Spicer uses metaphorically.

Wednesday, January 29, 2014

Review of "En Route" by Darcie Dennigan

"En Route" by Darcie Dennigan was offered by Poets.org's Poem-A-Day on January 29, 2014.  A link to the poem, including the poet's notes, may be found here:

http://www.poets.org/viewmedia.php/prmMID/23850?utm_source=PAD%3A+En+Route+by+Darcie+Dennigan&utm_campaign=poemaday_012914&utm_medium=email

Darcie Dennigan is an Assistant Professor in Residence at the University of Connecticut in Storrs, and is a co-founder of Frequency Writers:  A Writing Community for Providence & Beyond, in Providence, Rhode Island.  She has published two books of poetry.  Additional biographical information may be found here:  http://www.poetryfoundation.org/bio/darcie-dennigan.

The title implies an idea of "going somewhere" or a journey.  The opening line begins with an apparent reference to the Nativity but ends by stating that the baby is a Buddhist.  Perhaps the poet means that different cultures may have different paths to God, and that the innocent baby Jesus would recognize and perhaps embrace this idea.  The poem continues, in jarringly arrhythmic free verse, to bounce back and forth between Christian customs and the Buddhist concept of reincarnation.  The poem attempts to link the resurrection and eventual second coming of Christ to reincarnation, but I am not sure it succeeds in doing so.

Tuesday, January 28, 2014

New Poem: "Circuitous Route"

"Circuitous Route" is the final poem in my poetic memoir, A Wave of Poetry.  Re-deploying from Indonesia to New Jersey took over a week.  I flew from Indonesia to Thailand to Japan to Hawaii back to Japan to California to Delaware and then finally to New Jersey--just in time for Valentine's Day.

Review of "Clonazepam" by Donald Dunbar

"Clonazepam" by Donald Dunbar was offered by Poets.org's Poem-A-Day on January 28, 2014.  A link to the poem, including the poet's notes, may be found here:

http://www.poets.org/viewmedia.php/prmMID/23847?utm_source=PAD%3A+Clonazepam+by+Donald+Dunbar&utm_campaign=poemaday_012814&utm_medium=email

Donald Dunbar holds an MFA from the University of Arizona.  He teaches poetry to chefs in training at the Oregon Culinary Institute.  More information about this poet may be found here:

http://www.poetryfoundation.org/harriet/2013/04/were-not-here-to-describe-things-to-people-were-here-to-produce-things-in-them-an-interview-with-donald-dunbar/?woo

"Clonazepam" takes its name from a drug in the benzodiazepine class sold under the brand name "Klonopin."  It is commonly used to treat seizure disorders, but is also indicated to treat panic disorder.  In my experience as a physician, I have also seen it used off label to treat all kinds of other psychiatric problems, including Tourette Syndrome, as well as facial tics.

Dunbar gives a nod to the sonnet form with the fourteen-line length of his poem, but arranges the stanzas unconventionally--the first stanza has five lines, and the remaining three have three lines each.  Perhaps this unusual arrangement is being used to convey the message that a psychoactive drug can make a patient nearly normal, but there will still be some disjointedness and side effects.

Monday, January 27, 2014

New Poem: "Silk Quest"

In "Silk Quest," the latest addition to my poetic memoir, A Wave of Poetry, a pilot, a flight doc, and a chaplain go for a walk.  Sound like the beginning of a joke, doesn't it?

Review of "I Want the Certainty of Love in Another Language" by Christie Ann Reynolds

"I Want the Certainty of Love in Another Language" by Christie Ann Reynolds, a teacher of science and writing at Metropolitan Montessori School in New York City, was offered by Poets.org's Poem-A-Day on January 27, 2014.  A link to the poem, including the poet's notes, may be found here:

http://www.poets.org/viewmedia.php/prmMID/23848?utm_source=PAD%3A+I+Want+the+Certainty+of+Love+in+Another+Language+by+Christie+Ann+Reynolds&utm_campaign=poemaday_012714&utm_medium=email

The poem is presented in twenty-one lines of free verse, but free verse of an usual kind.  There are some lines that rhyme, and some that nearly rhyme:

The second line ends with "rose," the third line with "exploded."  These nearly rhyme.

The sixth, seventh, eighth, and tenth lines carry an "oo" sound:  shoot / through / soon / you moved.  The eleventh line is a near rhyme with these, ending in "mouth."

The seventh and eighth lines rhyme, ending with "through me" and "to be" respectively.

The fourteenth and fifteenth lines nearly rhyme, ending in "day" and "saying" respectively.

Finally, the nineteenth and twenty-first lines rhyme, ending with "deer" and "fear" respectively.

The poet reveals in her notes that this is a poem about the certainty of uncertainty in love.  The title refers to the desire of lovers to diminish the uncertainties concerning the feelings that they have for each other.  In order to understand each other truly, each lover wants the other to speak in a language of pure truth--one that does not sometimes beg the question, "What did he/she mean by that?"  The unusual rhyme scheme in this otherwise free verse poem reflects this universal sentiment.  The near rhymes reflect the feelings of insecurity, particularly those felt in the beginnings of a romantic affair.  The true rhymes reflect certainty--or perhaps only the certainty of uncertainty.


Sunday, January 26, 2014

New Poem: "Buddha Quest"

"Buddha Quest" is the latest installment in my poetic memoir, A Wave of Poetry.  With time to kill in Thailand, Rudy, the Chaplain, McNamee, and I decided to hike to a park that had an enormous statue of Buddha in it.  The journey turned out to be epic--a real odyssey of enlightenment.  Several times Rudy, McNamee, and I wanted to turn back, but the Chaplain provided the spirit for us to persevere.  We finally reached the park and, after braving wild dogs and climbing tortuous stairs, our goal.  The return journey was easier, and we stopped at a restaurant for my first taste of authentic Thai cuisine.

New Poem: "The Raven"

"The Raven" is the latest addition to my poetic memoir, A Wave of Poetry.  The KC-10 that was tasked, among other things, to re-deploy me from Indonesia to New Jersey, picked up three Phoenix Ravens as passengers.  They were on their way to Japan, and so were we.

Phoenix Ravens are part of the Air Force's security force.  They guard jets on the ground--to the death if necessary.  The combat training that they go through is brutal.  As a flight surgeon in garrison, I was on call for Ravens who were injured during training--and injuries were not uncommon.

One of the Ravens approached me with a medical problem.  It turned out to be pretty serious--a deep skin abscess with surrounding cellulitis.  In the United States, I would have hospitalized him, but doing so was unthinkable where we were in Thailand.  So, I busted out my surgery kit--that I carried with me but never thought I would ever have to use--and did what I had to do for him.  Fortunately, the operation was a success.  The odds were certainly stacked in that my patient was a tough, otherwise robustly healthy physical specimen.

In "The Raven," a parody of Edgar Allan Poe's more famous work, I tell the story of the rather gruesome operation that I performed on the Phoenix Raven in Thailand.  I followed Poe's intricate rhyme and rhythm schemes to the letter.  This was no easy task and gave me a whole new respect for Poe the poet.

Review of "Winter Sleep" by Edith Matilda Thomas

"Winter Sleep" by Edith Matilda Thomas was offered by Poets.org's Poem-A-Day on January 26, 2014.  A link to the poem may be found here:

http://www.poets.org/viewmedia.php/prmMID/21244?utm_source=PAD%3A+Winter+Sleep+by+Edith+Matilda+Thomas&utm_campaign=poemaday_012614&utm_medium=email

Edith Matilda Thomas (1854 - 1925) (pictured) was recognized by The New York Times as "one of the most distinguished American poets."  She published nine poetry collections in her lifetime, and an additional collection was published posthumously.  Her poetry was championed and inspired by fellow poet Helen Hunt Jackson.  Additional biographical information about Thomas may be found here:  http://www.poetryfoundation.org/bio/edith-m-thomas.

Helen Hunt Jackson (1830 - 1885) was a poet and Native American rights activist.  Born in Amherst, Massachusetts, she formed a lasting friendship with fellow poet Emily Dickinson.  Additional biographical information about Jackson may be found here:  http://www.poetryfoundation.org/bio/helen-hunt-jackson.

"Winter Sleep" is comprised of four quatrains that follow an abba cddc &c rhyme scheme.  Thomas' use of anaphora gives her poem a driving, unrelenting quality; this quality is similar to that of winter, aging, and death.  At the same time, the poem expresses a desire for youth, renewal, and spring.

Saturday, January 25, 2014

New Poem: "Cómo, Cuomo?"

I composed "Cómo, Cuomo?" in response to the New York governor's recent jackassery.  It is a pithy little sonnet that dares the dictatorial fascist to make New York so awful that all of the good citizens (ie: the ones who oppose him and who do the actual work and pay taxes) leave the state.  Then Mussolini junior would be left with the useless segment of society that lives off government hand outs.  It would serve him right.  I doubt the poem will every be published--more's the shame--but I feel better having written it.

Review of "Images" by Richard Aldington

"Images" by Richard Aldington was offered by Poets.org's Poem-A-Day on January 25, 2014.  A link to the poem may be found here:

http://www.poets.org/viewmedia.php/prmMID/21788?utm_source=PAD%3A+Images+by+Richard+Aldington&utm_campaign=poemaday_012514&utm_medium=email

Richard Aldington (1892 - 1962) (pictured) was a founding poet of the Imagist movement.  He was also a famous novelist, critic, essayist, and translator.  His earlier poems were influenced by Greek mythology and Japanese art.  His later work reflects his bitterness and disillusionment after serving in the British Army during World War I.  Additional biographical information may be found here http://www.poetryfoundation.org/bio/richard-aldington and here http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Aldington.

"Images" was published in 1916, the year Aldington joined the army in the middle of World War I.  One may assume that it was composed a year or two before its publication, before his experience as a soldier changed his outlook on life forever.

The poem is divided into six numbered parts.  Each is a haiku or tanka-like mini love poem.  I suspect that fellow Imagist H. D., whom Aldington wed in 1913, is the subject of the poem and the Muse behind its lyrical, romantic words and mood.

Friday, January 24, 2014

New Poem: "Extender Crew Roll Call"

"Extender Crew Roll Call" is the latest addition to my poetic memoir, A Wave of Poetry.  Some top-notch, dedicated airmen re-deployed me from Thailand to New Jersey:  Alejandro, Krueger, Maack, Pates, McNamee, and Adams.  I salute you.  Thank you for getting me home safely.

Review of "Stairway to Heaven" by Alison Hawthorne Deming

"Stairway to Heaven" by Alison Hawthorne Deming was offered by Poets.org's Poem-A-Day on January 24, 2014.  A link to the poem, including the poet's notes, may be found here:  http://www.poets.org/viewmedia.php/prmMID/23844.

Alison Hawthorne Deming (b. 1946) is an Associate Professor in Creative Writing at the University of Arizona.  She directed the University of Arizona Poetry Center from 1990 to 2000.  Additional biographical information may be found here:

http://www.poets.org/poet.php/prmPID/355?utm_source=PAD%3A+Stairway+to+Heaven+by+Alison+Hawthorne+Deming&utm_campaign=poemaday_012414&utm_medium=email

The poet reveals in her notes that "Stairway to Heaven" is an elegy to her brother who died in 2011.  The poem reveals that he died from cancer.

Stairway to Heaven by Led Zeppelin is considered by many to be the greatest rock ballad of all time.  Robert Plant (pictured), referenced in the poem, wrote the lyrics, a recording and transcription of which may be found here:  http://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/ledzeppelin/stairwaytoheaven.html.  Interesting facts about the song may be found here:  http://www.songfacts.com/detail.php?id=328.

Thursday, January 23, 2014

New Poem: "Gucci Boys"

 "Gucci Boys" is the next installment in my poetic memoir, A Wave of Poetry.  Gucci Boys was a tongue-in-cheek nickname given to the KC-10 Extender pilots.  The KC-10 Extender is a modified DC-10 that includes a boom employed for mid-air refueling missions.  One from McGuire arrived just as I was looking for a way to re-deploy from Thailand, and coincidentally I had saved its pilot's career after a medical mishap befell him.  He was only too happy to add me to his crew and fly me home.

Review of "Marriage: A Daybook" by Nicole Cooley

"Marriage: A Daybook" by Nicole Cooley was offered by Poets.org's Poem-A-Day on January 23, 2014.  A link to the poem, including the poet's notes, may be found here:  http://www.poets.org/viewmedia.php/prmMID/23843.

Nicole Cooley, Ph.D. is an Associate Professor of English and Creative Writing at Queens College--City University of New York, and is the Director of the M.F.A. Program in Creative Writing and Literary Translation there.  She has published three highly acclaimed books of poetry, most recently Breach in 2009, a collection of poems about Hurricane Katrina.  Additional biographical information may be found here:

http://www.poets.org/poet.php/prmPID/171?utm_source=PAD%3A+Marriage%3A+A+Daybook+by+Nicole+Cooley&utm_campaign=poemaday_012314&utm_medium=email

The poem is divided into three parts.  The second part is only one sentence--a quote from Catullus and a short comment upon it.  This is probably a reference to Gaius Valerius Catullus (85 BCE - 54 BCE) (pictured), a Latin poet of the late Roman Republic.  Catullus was one of the neoteric or "new" poets who rejected the epic poetry style of his contemporaries in favor of a shorter, lyrical, colloquial, more personal style.  Of the 161 of his poems that are extant, twenty-five are bawdy pieces concerning a woman named Lesbia and her infidelity.

Catullus had a strong impact on other poets, including, apparently, Dr. Cooley.  His influence may be recognized in the works of Horace, Ovid, Milton, and Wordsworth.  Additional biographical information about Catullus may be found here:  http://www.poets.org/poet.php/prmPID/606.

The first part of "Marriage" reminds me of an old saying about romance and marriage:  "It begins when you sink into his arms, and ends with your arms in the sink."  The final part probably alludes to Hurricane Katrina.

Wednesday, January 22, 2014

Review of "In Betweenness" by Pierre Joris

"In Betweenness" by Pierre Joris was offered by Poets.org's Poem-A-Day on January 22, 2014.  A link to the poem, including the poet's notes, may be found here:  http://www.poets.org/viewmedia.php/prmMID/23842.

Pierre Joris teaches poetry at the State University of New York at Albany.  In addition to being a published poet in his own right, he is a respected translator of poetry, twice the recipient of PEN awards for translation.  Additional biographical information may be found here:

http://www.poets.org/poet.php/prmPID/425?utm_source=PAD%3A+In+Betweenness+by+Pierre+Joris&utm_campaign=poemaday_012214&utm_medium=email

que dieu vous le rende dans l'autre monde means "that god returns it to you in the other world" in French.

son [sic, should be sen] vada o resti intanto non partirai di qua means something like "begone or remains in the meantime you will not leave here" in Italian.  It is a quote from Mozart's opera Don Giovanni http://www.mozart.cat/aries/aria_540b.htm.

Mr. Joris may have been having a fourth dimensional moment when he composed "In Betweenness."  He could feel today between "the day before yesterday and yesterday."  I felt as though the shadow of a tesseract passed over me as I read his words.

Tuesday, January 21, 2014

New Poem: "General Order One"

"General Order One" is the latest addition to my poetic memoir, A Wave of Poetry.  After languishing away on Sabang with little or nothing to do for over a week, we hitched a ride on a Japanese C-130 bound for Thailand.  We finally made it off the island!  We were looking forward to a post-mission libation.  Unfortunately, General Order One was in effect, so alcohol was quite literally off the table.

Review of "Anxieties" by Donna Masini

"Anxieties" by Donna Masini, a poetry teacher at CUNY Hunter College, was offered by Poets.org's Poem-A-Day on January 21, 2014.  A link to the poem, including the poet's notes, may be found here:

http://www.poets.org/viewmedia.php/prmMID/23841?utm_source=PAD%3A+Anxieties+by+Donna+Masini&utm_campaign=poemaday_012114&utm_medium=email

The poem consists of eleven terse couplets and a final singlet.  A kind of anagram word scramble form is used, about which the poet elaborates in her notes.  It is fun to read this poem aloud.  Nonsense, no scent, or one cent--you decide.

Monday, January 20, 2014

New Poem: "For Alison"

"For Alison," a Shakespearean love sonnet, is the latest addition to my poetic memoir, A Wave of Poetry.  I composed the poem nine years ago almost to the day.  As I was looking through the diary of my time in Indonesia, I discovered it amongst its leaves.

New Poem: "Estranged"

"Estranged" explores the themes of Walt Whitman's "To a Stranger" in a twenty-first century context.  People claim to understand Whitman, even to identify with him, but he would not identify with the vast majority of us today, our faces ever buried in cellphones, ears and brains buzzing with cyberfeed, and with our virtual friendships on social media.

New Poem: "Sabang Haibun"

"Sabang Haibun" is the latest addition to my poetic memoir, A Wave of Poetry.  I found the haiku portion of the haibun penned into the diary that I kept during my Indonesian odyssey.  The story preceding the haiku was easy enough to compose retrospectively.

New Poem: "The Two to Three Day Plan"

"The Two to Three Day Plan" is the next addition to my poetic memoir, A Wave of Poetry.  Deploying to Indonesia had been a priority mission.  Re-deploying home, however, was not.  For about two weeks after my op was over, I languished away in Indonesia being told every two to three days that I would be re-deploying in two to three days.

Review of "Let America Be America Again" by Langston Hughes

"Let America Be America Again" by Langston Hughes was offered by Poets.org's Poem-A-Day on January 20, 2014.  A link to the poem may be found here:  http://www.poets.org/viewmedia.php/prmMID/15609.

James Langston Hughes (1902 - 1967) (pictured) was known for his influence on the Harlem Renaissance of the 1920s.  He wrote eleven plays and several novels as well as a large body of poetry.  Additional biographical information may be found here:

http://www.poets.org/poet.php/prmPID/83?utm_source=PAD%3A+Let+America+Be+America+Again+by+Langston+Hughes&utm_campaign=poemaday_012014&utm_medium=email

According to Wikipedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Let_America_be_America_Again, "Let America Be America Again" was composed in 1935 and published in Esquire Magazine in 1936.  It is interesting and sad to note how the message of the poem still resonates today, almost eighty years later.

Sunday, January 19, 2014

New Poem: "Treasure Hunt"

"Treasure Hunt" is the latest addition to my poetic memoir, A Wave of Poetry.  As the Air Force's role in the tsunami relief mission was winding down, there were still many medical relief supplies jumbled together and mixed with other random supplies.  I was tasked to lead a team to sort out and organize the medical supplies.  It was a kind of treasure hunt.

Review of "A Dream Within a Dream" by Edgar Allan Poe

"A Dream Within a Dream" by Edgar Allan Poe was offered by Poets.org's Poem-A-Day on January 19, 2014.  A link to the poem, including a note by the editors of Poem-A-Day, may be found here:  http://www.poets.org/viewmedia.php/prmMID/16092.  An essay about the poetry of Poe was posted in Songs of Eretz on November 11, 2013 http://eretzsongs.blogspot.com/2013/11/you-cant-have-poetry-without-poe.html.

Edgar Allan Poe (1809 - 1849) is considered by many scholars to be one of the founders of both horror and detective fiction and to be the "architect" of the modern short story.  Poe was also a respected critic and in this role is seen as a forefather of the "art for art's sake" movement.  Sadly, his life was marked by struggles with gambling, depression, and alcoholism.  Forensic experts believe he died from Rabies.  Additional biographical information may be found here:

http://www.poets.org/poet.php/prmPID/130?utm_source=PAD%3A+A+Dream+Within+a+Dream+by+Edgar+Allan+Poe&utm_campaign=poemaday_011914&utm_medium=email

The poem is arranged in two stanzas--the first of eleven lines, the second of thirteen.  The rhyme scheme is that of rhyming couplets with the exception of two rhyming tercets, one of which opens the poem, the other of which comprises lines five through seven of the second stanza.  There are three feet in every line, but the internal rhythm of each foot varies.

The editor's note reveals that the poem was originally composed in the 1820s and later revised.  Poe would have been only twenty years old in 1829, but it must be remembered that he was only eighteen when his first collection of poems, Tamerlane, and Other Poems, was published in 1827.

The second person singular is introduced immediately in the first line.  It is not clear whether Poe is addressing the reader, everyone in the world, or perhaps his wife, Virginia, whom he married in 1836.  Virginia died from tuberculosis in 1847, exacerbating Poe's alcoholism and intensifying his depressed mood.  Poe then introduces the conceit that what we perceive as reality is but a dream or even less substantial than that--a "dream within a dream."  The mood here is that of profound depression and loss.  "Hope has flown away."

In the second stanza, Poe conjures an image of himself desperately trying to cling to reality, each day of which is represented metaphorically by a grain of sand.  Sand evokes the image of the Sandman--the mythical bringer of sleep and dreams.  Alas, the sand slips through his fingers and is washed away by the sea--perhaps a metaphor for salty tears and the relentlessness of time.

Saturday, January 18, 2014

New Poem: "Nothing To Do"

"Nothing To Do" is the latest addition to my poetic memoir, A Wave of Poetry.  For days after our op was over, the TALCE and I languished away with nothing to do.  This poem captures that frustrating feeling of boredom with words and word placement.

Review of "Mag" by Carl Sandburg

"Mag" by Carl Sandburg was offered by Poets.org's Poem-A-Day on January 18, 2014.  A link to the poem may be found here:  http://www.poets.org/viewmedia.php/prmMID/23845.  The editor of Poem-A-Day notes that "Mag" was first published in 1916 in Sandburg's collection, Chicago Poems, which helped establish the poet's reputation.

Carl Sandburg (1878 - 1967) (pictured) is perhaps most famous for his definitive biography of Abraham Lincoln for which he was awarded a Pulitzer Prize in 1940.  He was awarded a second Pulitzer for his Complete Poems in 1951.  Additional biographical information may be found here:

http://www.poets.org/poet.php/prmPID/28?utm_source=PAD%3A+Mag+by+Carl+Sandburg&utm_campaign=poemaday_011814&utm_medium=email

and here:

http://www.thirteen.org/13pressroom/press-release/american-masters-2012-season-the-day-carl-sandburg-died/carl-sandburg-biography-timeline/

"Mag" is a sonnet.  Sonnet's are known for being a vehicle for the expression of romantic love.  Accordingly, the choice to use the sonnet form here is deliberately ironic.

Sandburg spent his late teens as a hobo in Kansas.  The wish of the speaker to be "a bum on the bumpers" evokes this time in Sandburg's life, as does the general wish to be free of his ill-considered marriage and children.

It is not clear if Sandburg is the speaker in this poem.  He married Lillian "Paula" Steichen in 1908, and, by all accounts, they were happy.  They had two daughters, one of whom died shortly after she was born in 1913, the other born the year the poem was published, 1916.  This poem does make one wonder if Sandburg was experiencing a little "seven year itch" when he composed "Mag" which was published about seven years after he married and the same year that he became saddled with the responsibilities of fatherhood.



Friday, January 17, 2014

Review of "Snow Globe" by Kathy Fagan

"Snow Globe" by Kathy Fagan, a teacher in the MFA Program at Ohio State University, was offered by Poets.org's Poem-A-Day on January 17, 2014.  A link to the poem, including the poet's notes, may be found here:

http://www.poets.org/viewmedia.php/prmMID/23835?utm_source=PAD%3A+Snow+Globe+by+Kathy+Fagan&utm_campaign=poemaday_011714&utm_medium=email

The poem was inspired by Encounters at the End of the World, a documentary film by Werner Herzog.  A review of the movie by the New York Times, including links to movie clips, may be found here:  http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/11/movies/11enco.html?_r=0.  Note that the last seconds of the first clip depicts the Antarctic scientists pressing their ears to the ice to listen to the calls of the seals swimming below them--an image which inspired Fagan more than any other, as she reveals in her notes, and which is responsible for the eerie images and haunting feelings evoked by her poem.

Thursday, January 16, 2014

New Poem: "TALCE Roll Call"

"TALCE Roll Call" is the latest installment in my poetic memoir, A Wave of Poetry.  Every enlisted member of the Tanker Airlift Control Element to which I was attached in Indonesia was a fine American with whom I was proud to serve.  This poem tells a little bit about each of these outstanding airmen:  Powell, Lofton, Yahut, Watkins, Kendrick, Fraley, Aguiejo, Charleston, Bridwell, and Bennet.  A separate poem, "Major Robert Dotson," is dedicated to my comrade and CO.

Review of "Post-Dissertation-Intervention (i.)" by Ronaldo Wilson

"Post-Dissertation-Intervention (i.)" by Ronaldo Wilson, an Assistant Professor in the Literature Department at the University of California, Santa Cruz, was offered by Poets.org's Poem-A-Day on January 16, 2014.  A link to the poem, including the poet's notes, may be found here:

http://www.poets.org/viewmedia.php/prmMID/23834?utm_source=PAD%3A+Post-Dissertation-Intervention+%28i.%29+by+Ronaldo+Wilson&utm_campaign=poemaday_011614&utm_medium=email

The poem is presented in eleven couplets, each one its own stanza, and each one inspired by a poet, writer, artist, or dancer.  The poem is a commentary on the self image of American blacks and the way that they may be perceived by others of any race, including those of African descent.

The first stanza directly quotes the dancer and choreographer Judith Jameson [sic, presumably Jamison].  The first person singular here is Jamison, not Wilson.  Jamison (b. 1943) is the director emerita of the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater.  More information about her may be found here:  http://www.alvinailey.org/about/people/judith-jamison.

The second stanza refers to Elizabeth Alexander (b. 1962), the Chair of African American Studies at Yale.  She was asked by Barak Obama to compose and read a poem upon the occasion of his inauguration.  More about this essayist and poet may be found here:  http://www.poetryfoundation.org/bio/elizabeth-alexander.  Wilson refers to her book of essays, The Black Interior.  Details about this book may be found here:  http://www.amazon.com/The-Black-Interior-Elizabeth-Alexander/dp/1555973930.

The third stanza considers Brooks, presumably Gwendolyn Brooks, the famous black American activist poet.  Brooks was recently discussed in Songs of Eretz http://eretzsongs.blogspot.com/2014/01/review-of-because-it-looked-hotter-that.html.  Additional information about her life and career may be found here:  http://www.english.illinois.edu/maps/poets/a_f/brooks/life.htm.  She wrote the poem "The Life of Lincoln West" which may be found here:  http://www.poetryfoundation.org/poem/172096.  Both Wilson, in his poem, and Alexander, in her book of essays, "consider Brooks."  Particularly, all three consider what it may mean to the individual who has "classical," though some would say "ugly," negroid features.  This thought carries through into the fourth stanza.

The fifth stanza refers to June Jordan (1936 - 2002), the Caribbean American poet, playwright, essayist, and activist.  Additional biographical information about Jordan may be found here:  http://www.poetryfoundation.org/bio/june-jordan.  Jordan felt strongly that black poets should write in "black" English.

In the sixth stanza, Wilson indicates that he disagrees with Jordan but nevertheless understands her point of view.  Wilson then refers to the Indian poet, novelist, and essayist Meena Alexander (b. 1951), the Distinguished Professor of English at Hunter College and the Graduate Center, City University of New York.  Additional biographical information about her may be found here:  http://www.poets.org/poet.php/prmPID/778.

In the seventh stanza, Wilson refers to Bearden, presumably Romare Bearden (1911 - 1988), the African American artist, writer, and humanist.  Additional biographical information about Bearden as well as examples of his artwork may be found here:  http://www.beardenfoundation.org/artlife/biography/biography.shtml.  Bearden was noted for his collages, one of which, The Calabash, is pictured.  Reference is also made to Lawrence, presumably Jacob Lawrence (1917 - 2000), an African American painter whose career Bearden nurtured.  More about Lawrence and his artwork may be found here:  http://whitney.org/www/jacoblawrence/meet/.

In the eighth stanza, Wilson introduces Fanon, presumably the Marxist, Frantz Fanon (1925 - 1961), best known for his involvement in the struggle against France for the independence of Algeria, the country of his birth.  Additional information about Fanon may be found here:  http://www.iep.utm.edu/fanon/.  Wilson makes a pun on Fanon's name.

 In the ninth stanza, Wilson quotes a passage of Beloved by Toni Morrison (b. 1931), an African American novelist, editor, and professor who received the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1993.  Additional information about her may be found here:  http://www.tonimorrisonsociety.org.  A review of Beloved appeared in Songs of Eretz on December 16, 2012 http://eretzsongs.blogspot.com/2012/12/review-of-beloved-by-toni-morrison.html.

The tenth stanza brings up Brooks again, and the final stanza refer to the Fisk University Second Black Writers' Conference which Brooks attended in 1967.  Her attendance was a turning point in her career which thereafter was deeply involved in activism and the Black Arts movement.





 


Wednesday, January 15, 2014

An Invitation to Join a MOOC on Walt Whitman

Dear Friends of Eretz,

I invite all of you to join me as distance students in a Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) on Walt Whitman being offered by Harvard University through edX.  The course is free and open to the public.  It will run from January 15 to March 14.  A certificate may be earned if desired, or you may simply choose to audit the course--you will get out of it what you put into it.

Follow this link www.edx.org to get to edX.  Once there, sign up for: Al12.2x Poetry in America:  Whitman.  I hope to "meet" some of you in the online course discussion groups.

Regards,

Steven Wittenberg Gordon, MD
Editor

PS:  Please email me swgordonmd@gmail.com if you live in the Kansas City area.  It would be fun to arrange a live meet-up for this course.

New Poem: "General Boredom"

"General Boredom" is the latest additional to my poetic odyssey, A Wave of Poetry.  Our op was over.  We had absolutely nothing to do.  We felt good about what we had accomplished in the tsunami relief effort, but our role in that was finished and we wanted to go home.  However, the Generals could not make up their minds about the matter.  So, we stayed.  Bored.

Review of "For Tranströmer" by Norman Dubie

"For Tranströmer" by Norman Dubie was offered by Poets.org's Poem-A-Day on January 15, 2014.  A link to the poem, including the poet's notes, may be found here:

http://www.poets.org/viewmedia.php/prmMID/23833

Norman Dubie (b. 1945) is a Regents' Professor at Arizona State University.  He is the author of numerous books of poetry.  Additional biographical information may be found here:

http://www.poets.org/poet.php/prmPID/172?utm_source=PAD%3A+For+Tranströmer+by+Norman+Dubie&utm_campaign=poemaday_011514&utm_medium=email

Tomas Tranströmer (b. 1931) is considered to be one of Sweden's most important poets.  He received the Nobel Prize for Literature in 2011.  Additional biographical information may be found here:

http://www.poets.org/poet.php/prmPID/1112

The poem depicts a tragic beaching of whales and a woman who counts them.  The woman is praised for taking the time to document the number of beached whales while also being a busy and productive member of society and the military.

Tuesday, January 14, 2014

New Showcase Story Posted: "High Noon in Kirojo"

From the Editor:  A thank you to all Friends of Eretz who read, commented upon, and enjoyed the previous showcase story, "The Final Test of Paladin Pao."

New Story Posted January 14, 2014:  "High Noon in Kirojo."  In this story, a paladin apprentice faces an outlaw in an old west inspired showdown.  Reminiscent of the old Kung Fu TV series.

New Poem: "Operation Unified Assistance"

"Operation Unified Assistance" is the next installment in my poetic memoir, A Wave of Poetry.  Operation Unified Assistance was the official name given by the military for its tsunami relief efforts.  Ironically, the name was given on the day that my role in the operation more or less officially ended--the day we were ordered to leave the theater and turn over relief operations to the Indonesians, UN, and NGOs.

Review of "Because it looked hotter that way" by Camille Dungy

"Because it looked hotter that way" by Camille Dungy was offered by Poets.org's Poem-A-Day on January 14, 2014.  A link to the poem, including the poet's notes, may be found here:

http://www.poets.org/viewmedia.php/prmMID/23832

Camille Dungy (b. 1972) is a professor in the English Department at Colorado State University.  She is the author of three collections of poetry.  Additional biographical information may be found here:

http://www.poets.org/poet.php/prmPID/2267?utm_source=PAD%3A+Because+it+looked+hotter+that+way+by+Camille+Dungy&utm_campaign=poemaday_011414&utm_medium=email

The poet reveals in her notes that "Because" is a "Golden Shovel," an acrostic form popularized by Terrance Hayes, which uses each word of another poem as the last word of each line.  Dungy uses "We Real Cool" by Gwendolyn Brooks to form her acrostic.  A link to this poem may be found here:

http://www.poetryfoundation.org/poetrymagazine/poem/17315

Biographical information about Gwendolyn Brooks (1917 - 2000) (pictured), the first black author to win the Pulitzer Prize, may be found here:

http://www.poetryfoundation.org/bio/gwendolyn-brooks

As a fellow poet, my hat comes off to Ms. Dungy for her success with this restrictive acrostic form.  Writing a good acrostic where the first word in each line counts is difficult enough.  Creating one where the last word of each line forms the acrostic is at least an order of magnitude more difficult.  It is always easy to see where one begins, but where one will eventually end is not as easy to see.


Monday, January 13, 2014

New Poem: "Take Notice!"

"Take Notice!" is the latest addition to my poetic memoir, A Wave of Poetry.  Take Notice! was the motto of the USS Essex when I sailed on her.  The ship has amazing combat capability.  Equally amazing, her medical capability is exceeded only by the USS Mercy.

Review of "I Know A Few Things" by Stuart Dischell

"I Know A Few Things" by Stuart Dischell, a teacher in the MFA Program in Creative Writing at the University of North Carolina Greensboro, was offered by Poets.org's Poem-A-Day on January 13, 2014.  A link to the poem, including the poet's notes, may be found here:

http://www.poets.org/viewmedia.php/prmMID/23836?utm_source=PAD%3A+I+Know+A+Few+Things+by+Stuart+Dischell&utm_campaign=poemaday_011314&utm_medium=email

The poem is presented in ten couplets followed by a final singlet--twenty-one lines in total.  The style is reminiscent of the New York School "I do this I do that" approach to the modern poem.


Sunday, January 12, 2014

Review of "Lines on Nonsense" by Eliza Lee Follen

"Lines on Nonsense" by Eliza Lee Follen (1787 - 1860) (pictured), a Boston poet and abolitionist, was offered by Poets.org's Poem-A-Day on January 12, 2014.  A link to the poem may be found here:

http://www.poets.org/viewmedia.php/prmMID/23838?utm_source=PAD%3A+Lines+on+Nonsense+by+Eliza+Lee+Follen&utm_campaign=poemaday_011214&utm_medium=email

"Lines on Nonsense" consists of nine quatrains with an abab cdcd efef &c rhyme scheme.  The poem praises nonsense as one of life's pleasures and warns against allowing reason to diminish its importance, for there can be much good reason in good nonsense.

Saturday, January 11, 2014

New Poem: "Little Bottles of Wine"

"Little Bottles of Wine" is the next installment in my poetic memoir, A Wave of Poetry.  It was a long held rumor that French MREs had little bottles of sweet French wine in them.  So, when a contingent of French Army arrived near our base of operations, we were most eager to trade our MREs for theirs.

Review of "El Beso" by Angelina Weld Grimké

"El Beso" by Angelina Weld Grimké (1880 - 1958) was offered by Poets.org's Poem-A-Day on January 11, 2014.  A link to the poem may be found here:

http://www.poets.org/viewmedia.php/prmMID/23837?utm_source=PAD%3A+El+Beso+by+Angelina+Weld+Grimké&utm_campaign=poemaday_011114&utm_medium=email

The title is Spanish for "the kiss."  The poem is a love song, full of passion, yearning, and confused emotions.  Interestingly, the poem has sixteen lines when a sonnet might have been expected.  Maybe it was all the dashes, but I was reminded of Emily Dickinson when I read this poem.

The poem was published in 1909.  Interestingly, the Austrian Symbolist/Art Nouveau artist Gustav Klimt painted a piece entitled "The Kiss" (pictured) between 1907 and 1908.  Coincidence?  WebMuseum, Paris http://www.ibiblio.org/wm/paint/auth/klimt/kiss/ describes Klimt's painting as "a fascinating icon of the loss of self that lovers experience…visually the emotional and physical explosion of erotic love."  Grimké produces the same results in poetry form with "El Beso."

Friday, January 10, 2014

New Poem: "Crack Rolls"

"Crack Rolls" is the next installment in my poetic memoir, A Wave of Poetry.  Living conditions aboard a Navy ship, even for officers and even on ships as big as the Essex or Lincoln, are cramped, and the daily routine is monotonous.  A saving grace is the food, which is excellent by any standard.  The dinner rolls were particularly amazing--I have not had better before or since.

New Poem: "The Maze Belowdecks"

"The Maze Belowdecks" is the next installment in my poetic odyssey, A Wave of Poetry.  I was born without a sense of direction.  So, the situation belowdecks on the Abraham Lincoln, with its maze of identical looking passageways, was an absolute nightmare for me.  I would be a ghost wandering lost on the ship to this day were it not for a notebook that I kept for jotting down landmarks.  This notebook survived my adventures, and the elaborate directions to the officer's mess that I wrote for myself make for an interesting poem as written.

New Poem: "The Benefits of Being Barney"

"The Benefits of Being Barney" is the latest installment in my poetic memoir, A Wave of Poetry.  During my first assignment with the Air Force, I became the squadron flight surgeon for the 27th Fighter Squadron.  Their pilots kind of adopted me, had me fly with them, and gave me a call sign and everything.

Fighter pilots, of whatever jet or branch of service, form a kind of fraternity.  When I boarded the Lincoln, I had merely to introduce myself by my fighter call sign, Barney, to be immediately welcomed and accepted as a brother by the FA/18 Hornet (pictured) pilots on board.  This had certain benefits for which I was most grateful.  At the time, it almost felt like coming home.  I was back in fighter country.

Review of "Token Loss" by Kay Ryan

"Token Loss" by Kay Ryan was offered by Poets.org's Poem-A-Day on January 10, 2014.  A link to the poem, including the poet's notes, may be found here:

http://www.poets.org/viewmedia.php/prmMID/23830

National Humanities Medal recipient Kay Ryan (b. 1945) won the Pulitzer Prize in Poetry in 2011 for her collection, The Best of It:  New and Selected Poems.  She served as Poet Laureate of the United States for two terms.  For additional biographical information, follow this link:

http://www.poets.org/poet.php/prmPID/352?utm_source=PAD%3A+Token+Loss+by+Kay+Ryan&utm_campaign=poemaday_011014&utm_medium=email

"Token Loss" is reminiscent of the story of Smaug the dragon in J. R. R. Tolkien's The Hobbit.  This is the first poem of a speculative nature that I recall reading in Poem-A-Day.  I wonder if the powers that be at Poets.org heeded my suggestion for speculative poetry on their recent survey?  How refreshing!  Even more refreshing is that a speculative poet served as a US Poet Laureate.

Thursday, January 9, 2014

New Poem: "Forklift"

"Forklift" is the latest installment in my poetic memoir, A Wave of Poetry.  Our forklift was the envy of the Indonesians, who did not have one.  Its use allowed the TALCE to load and offload aircraft with amazing speed.

One day, while we were waiting for the Navy to pick us up, SrA Bennett taught me how to operate the thing.  So, I have another useful skill in case this poet/physician gig doesn't work out.