Ms. Alexander cites this classic essay that says that poetry "forms the quality of the light within which we predicate our hopes and dreams toward survival and change, first made into language, then into idea, then into more tangible action."
On the day before the President Obama's inauguration in 2009, Elizabeth Alexander recited this poem on the mall for a soundcheck. And hundreds of people stopped, listened, and clapped.
In this poem, Ms. Alexander says that the late Lucille Clifton informed her fluid approach to "a very deep kind of ancestral understanding... that moves us into the future." Includes the audio of the poet reading her work.
The last poem of a longer work, Ms. Alexander puts this together with her poem "Autumn Passage" as an example of having those experiences of giving birth and the privilege of sitting with one near the end of life.
Listen to Ms. Alexander recite this poem with and without music. Which one do you like better? In our show she reads this after "Neonatology" and surprises herself with the appropriateness of the pairing.
An excerpt of the poem Ms. Alexander read at the inauguration of President Barack Obama.
Listen to Ms. Alexander recite this poem with and without music. Which one do you like better?
Listen to Ms. Alexander recite this poem with and without music. Which one do you like better?
Listen to Ms. Alexander recite this poem with and without music. Which one do you like better?
Elizabeth Alexander discusses truth, metaphor and language with Stephen Colbert on the Colbert Report the day after delivering "Praise Song for the Day" at Barack Obama's first inauguration.
With the unseasonably mild winter, a poem reflecting on how our inner and outer lives take shape in unpredictable ways.
A reflection on the different interpretations of a single poem and how one man's experience of suffering affects his reading of "Le Vase Brisé" ("The Broken Vase").
Marie Howe uses poetry to explore disagreement + the distance between people.
Elizabeth Alexander on poetry, the art of revision and letting creative expressions be, and remaining open to the world around you with E. Ethelbert Miller.
Brian Blade's poetic description of Joni Mitchell's "chords of inquiry."
A guest contributor uses poetry as a vehicle for processing his faith, doubts and depression during the Advent season.
This week's reflection on the words of Martin Luther King Jr., poetry, nourishment from our listeners, the goodness in sport, and the power of family.
A man at a coffeehouse in downtown Long Beach reads aloud to himself.
This particular show brought tears to my eyes as I listened to it on my way home Sunday morning. I was working all Saturday during the day and all night on the Labor and Delivery floor at a hospital in New York City. When I heard Elizabeth Walker read "giving birth is like jazz, something from silence, then all of it" it literally took my breath away. That is exactly what it's like. Then when she went on to talk about the how the expectant is no longer the celebrity.... incredible. It was such wonderful timing that I happen to tune in at that moment as I was leaving the labor floor. Ms Tippet, you mentioned in your last show that most people come across your show by accident, I find that is true for me over and over again.
Thank you so much for your show. It is what makes NPR glow.
A letter of mine got published in Birder's World in 2004. As soon as you started talking about "words that shimmer," I related it to that story. I exactly what you mean about power. Even parrots can discern it ...
"In response to Eldon Greij's December 2003 article (p.76) asking whether Alex [the famous african gray parrot in Dr. Irene Pepperberg's studies] is thinking, let me say this: For 10 years, I've kept an aviary with 23 birds. I'm not teaching them to mimic humans. I want to experience birdness, not train performers. So acquiring a talking Timneh [African] Gray from a person who has moved to Alaska has rocked my world. The Gray has all my other birds trying to talk. They see how it works for him and they want that power. They're no longer satisfied with clicks and whistles.
My new bird tries to lure me to his cage using tone of voice, correct language, and novel word usage. He says, "Birdy. C'mere. C'mon. I no bite you. I really mean it. C'mon." Who taught that avian creature a few rungs down the evolutionary ladderl to use pronouns? He recognizes 'power words' that achieve a desired effect. I have to be careful not to get emotional around him because it teaches him how to manipulate me. As it is, he laughs in the right places using that funny little extra sigh people add when their stomachs ache: "Ha ha ha, ahhh." Lord only knows what that room will sound like in a few years when all those birds can talk and giggle."
I wanna add a little insight into what the second decade of living with parrots has taught me. I have rescued two more talking parrots --a macaw and a cockatoo. I came home from work after accidentally leaving the Gray's door unlatched last week. He mowed all my hanging plants (which are bird safe) and the whole aviary greeted me with kissy noises. I took it as a sign of how far we've come. Although I've only made the mistake of leaving a Senegal parrot unattended once before, it resulted in a very dramatic scene born of passion and revenge. Since then, I've spent a lot of time showing them how to let go of strong emotions and it really pays off.
A letter of mine got published in Birder's World in 2004. As soon as you started talking about "words that shimmer," I related it to that story. I exactly what you mean about power. Even parrots can discern it ...
"In response to Eldon Greij's December 2003 article (p.76) asking whether Alex [the famous african gray parrot in Dr. Irene Pepperberg's studies] is thinking, let me say this: For 10 years, I've kept an aviary with 23 birds. I'm not teaching them to mimic humans. I want to experience birdness, not train performers. So acquiring a talking Timneh [African] Gray from a person who has moved to Alaska has rocked my world. The Gray has all my other birds trying to talk. They see how it works for him and they want that power. They're no longer satisfied with clicks and whistles.
My new bird tries to lure me to his cage using tone of voice, correct language, and novel word usage. He says, "Birdy. C'mere. C'mon. I no bite you. I really mean it. C'mon." Who taught that avian creature a few rungs down the evolutionary ladder to use pronouns? He recognizes 'power words' that achieve a desired effect. I have to be careful not to get emotional around him because it teaches him how to manipulate me. As it is, he laughs in the right places using that funny little extra sigh people add when their stomachs ache: "Ha ha ha, ahhh." Lord only knows what that room will sound like in a few years when all those birds can talk and giggle."
I wanna add a little insight into what the second decade of living with parrots has taught me. I have rescued two more talking parrots --a macaw and a cockatoo. I came home from work after accidentally leaving the Gray's door unlatched last week. He mowed all my hanging plants (which are bird safe) and the whole aviary greeted me with kissy noises. I took it as a sign of how far we've come. Although I've only made the mistake of leaving a Senegal parrot unattended once before, it resulted in a very dramatic scene born of passion and revenge. Since then, I've spent a lot of time showing them how to let go of strong emotions and it really pays off.
As a poet this interview was very interesting, however it’s impact went beyond interesting as it seemed to speak directly to a poem I had crafted this year. When Elizabeth Alexander said that poetry is “not all love, love, love, and I'm sorry the dog died.” it immediately reminded me of my poem, “Sometimes, dogs”
A bit later in the interview she elaborates, saying “You know, when I say ‘poetry is not all love, love, love,’ I mean romantic love is where we go first with the word. But really there is so much more to the word. The word is sober. The word is grave. The word is not just about something light and happy and pleasurable. The word calls up deep, deep responsibilities.” She talks about how poetry has always been about community, that at it’s roots it is part of the societal discussion. She implies that this is the impetus of poetry, or at least a part of it’s functioning, when she says that it’s essence is “I gotta tell you my story. I gotta tell you what happened. Let's think about who we are.”
Even though I understand the context of what Dr. Alexander was speaking to, I also received a different message, a message that helped me to understand my own poem. “Sometimes, dogs “ here is a poem about being sorry that the dog died, and so much more which falls into the category of both about love and about the dog dying and about sober, grave issues which I believe are calling us to brave, deep responsibilities to talk about who we are.
sometimes, dogs
If you have had a dog,
then you know their pure love,
and most, their frailty
sometimes, dogs outlive their offspring
yet their lifespan is still shorter than their owners’
especially the children they’ve grown up playing with
you have tasted the sweetness your own life
in their tail wagging from ear to ear
as much you have tasted your own mortality
in the foreshadow of their passing
the latter days spent snoozing in the sun
spunk of youth rising only in rabbit dreams
or in their eyes momentarily at the crinkle
of the treat bag or cheese wrapper
the glossy sheen of their coat gone dry, wiry
perhaps grey or even gone, worn at the elbows
…the stick fetched far fewer times
then one day they’re gone,
you hate to see them go, sometimes
torn at the seams of sickness
and circumstances,
the catch 22 at the end of love, with
the other hand being only an end of
suffering,
sometimes
think you hear them murmur in the night
or the nails on the floorboards, chasing rabbits
wake up early, out of habit
to let no-dog out,
and sigh
, turn on the TV in an empty room,
watch without sound
the news
of the latest loss of school children
feel a thing inside reflected too deeply
a companion sorrow touching yours
as your heart comes to terms with the facts
sometimes dogs outlive their children
~David Anthony Martin
Copyright 2013
This poem, “Sometimes, dogs” is a poem that gave me pause to reflect as it is the only poem I have written in which the “plot” and movement of events is not accurately drawn from a single experience in my life, rather it is a hybrid of experiences woven together into an anecdotal narrative-styled poem. It is a poem of experience; a poem, which I hope, allows us to “…think about who we are.” Strangely enough, Dr. Alexander also addresses this type of poem further into the interview saying,
“The truth of a poem is actually much deeper than whether or not something really happened. What matters is an undergirding truth that I think is the power of poetry and I think that, when I veer from that even by a syllable, it's my job to know if I've veered from that.”
I am going to post this in more of an article poem on my blog An Illuminated Path of Heart. You can read more samples of my work there at: http://davidanthonymartin.wordpress.com/
My life has changed with the Lord above,
Now I think to always show love.
Never wanting to hurt anyone,
Only looking to show Jesus' love.
I will keep strong faith in the Lord above,
Cause He shined on me with His love.
Cherish each day with great thanks,
Stand firm on Jesus' bank.
No other can be true as He,
My heart He does lead.
Come find your strength in the Lord,
Learn to carry His Awesome sword.
Truth is what He is about,
Praise His name and give a shout.
He died so we could live free,
I love Him and know truly He loves
me indeed.
Written by: Leslie Taylor
Elizabeth Alexander is a poet and professor of African American Studies at Yale University. She wrote and delivered "Praise Song for the Day" at Barack Obama's presidential inauguration. Her most recent book of poems is Crave Radiance: New and Selected Poems, 1990-2010.
Host/Producer: Krista Tippett
Senior Editor: Trent Gilliss
Senior Producer: David McGuire
Technical Director/Producer: Chris Heagle
Producer: Nancy Rosenbaum
Associate Producer Online: Susan Leem
Coordinating Producer: Stefni Bell
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