One of my favorite podcasts is On Being, a spiritual-based interview-style conversation. This week’s recording was sparked by a recent live episode between Krista Tippet and 24th Poet Laureate Ada Limón. This was my first formal introduction to Limón’s work. What intrigued me most about her story is that Limón tells us that she grew up as an Atheist. This pulled me in because I’ve never met anyone with that experience.
The second time I met her work was when I was gifted a copy of All We Know of Pleasure, an erotic poetry anthology- this is when I understood why she’s highly received.
Tippett, host and creator of On Being, starts the episode like this:
I really believe that poetry is something we humans need almost as much as we need water and air. We can forget this. And then there are times in a life, and in the life of the world, where only a poem — perhaps in the form of the lyrics of a song, or a half sentence we ourselves write down — can touch the mystery of ourselves, and the mystery of others. So my interest, when I get into conversation with a poet, is not to talk about poetry, but to delve into what this way with words and sound and silence teaches us about being fully human — this adventure we’re all on that is by turns treacherous and heartbreaking and revelatory and wondrous.
Something about the this way with words and sound and silence hit me hard.
I have committed so much of the past five years to my voice work and to somatic movement sessions- where silence and intentional sound are just as important as the content. Sometimes I would argue that they are the core of the thing. And when I think about it poets and poets that write novels are my greatest teachers. dj’s too but that’s another post.
Poets teach me how to communicate with as few words as possible. Poets teach me how to be okay with the pauses. Poets teach me that format is just as important as the words. Poets teach me that it is ok to feel something about everything.
When I was finishing undergrad, I was really lucky enough to take a Sylvia Plath course. The room was full of writers and poets and…me. We would read Plath’s work to each other in class, and there were some people I just couldn’t wait to hear them read because their voices made me feel like I was floating on silk.
That was such a gift to me. So, I listened to Plath read her work, and I practiced reading her work in a “poet” voice in my bathtub the night before class. I wanted people to be just as excited to hear me read. I wanted the chance to return the gift.
This gift is a reminder to me that we are made up of little pieces of each other, our experiences, our memories, our actions, the moments of pause, the in-between of the doing. And that even if there is no sound or movement- we still exist. That the sound and the silence are all part of the whole.
This substack post is reminiscent of my live journal days—and that’s on inner child work.
Today, I will be reading Drowning in Paradise and next episode I want to connect Limon’s poetry to a short story written by Dantiel W. Moniz.
I am also going to break my three LO rules next time (!!!) Thank you for letting me practice here.
Until then, I recommend reading Milk Blood Heat & All We Know of Pleasure- if you do, please let me know what you think by commenting on this thread or responding to this email. <3
One day, I will inherit a cozy legacy podcast. And so it is or something greater
falling in love with the bones of the thing