Monthly Archives: October 2019

Wednesday, October 30 Pre-note: These two poets have long been alive in my reading life, William Carlos Williams and Denise Levertov.  A friend from U Penn’s grad program where we met in 1993, surprised me with the news that these … Continue reading →

Friday, October 25 “Summer ends now, now barbarous in beauty the stooks arise around” Getting ready for a rainy day — sun rises at 7:55 and sets at 6:37 — each day a little shorter and the sun a little … Continue reading →

Wednesday, October 23  –  “Greyhaired, I have not grown wiser, unless to perceive absurdity is wisdom. A powerless wisdom.” Why do all these autumn travel days remind me of Denise Levertov’s poem about falling in love as an elderly woman? … Continue reading →

Friday, October 18 – –  Our Nor’easter shook the earth but spared the autumn leaves The early days of this week, a wind storm hammered New England with 60 mile per hour winds;  many people have lost power, and many … Continue reading →

Wednesday October 14 — “What you can plan is too small for you to live” Opening a book of poetry.  Turning pages until a poem catches your attention, stopping to read out loud.   Pretty good way to start a … Continue reading →

Friday, October 11, 2019 “That we endure absence, if need be, without losing our love for each other. without closing our doors to the unknown.” A recent grad called me last night  (i.e., Oct 23, 2013 – less than one … Continue reading →

Wednesday, October 9, 2019     “Seasons of mists and mellow fruitfulness” One of the list’s readers last year about this time responded to an all-time favorite autumn poem from Gerard Manley Hopkins – – who pretty regularly knocks me … Continue reading →

October 8, 2019 From Monday, October 7 to Monday, October 14, I will be making my annual retreat in New England.  I will occasional check emails to catch important messages, but for the most part stillness wants my attention. Time to … Continue reading →

Wednesday, October 4-  “To attach oneself to place is to surrender to it, and suffer with it.” In October, lots of people in university worlds suck air, walk too fast, and try to manage big and little start-ups.  “Too fast,” … Continue reading →

Wednesday, Oct 3 Coming home to Six Mile and Livernois after a month on Pine Ridge teaches me again about the energy of the university;  campus is alive with the works of vision and daily challenges that emerge when faculty … Continue reading →