{"id":213,"date":"2014-01-07T00:00:29","date_gmt":"2014-01-07T00:00:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sites.udmercy.edu\/mission-and-identity\/?p=213"},"modified":"2019-09-18T16:51:28","modified_gmt":"2019-09-18T20:51:28","slug":"jan-7-polar-vortex-and-beach-fantasy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sites.udmercy.edu\/poetry\/2014\/01\/07\/jan-7-polar-vortex-and-beach-fantasy\/","title":{"rendered":"Jan 7 Polar vortex and beach fantasy"},"content":{"rendered":"
Tuesday, January 7<\/span><\/div>\n
<\/div>\n

“A whirlpool of frigid, dense air known as a polar vortex descended Monday into Michigan, pummeling metro Detroit with a dangerous cold that shut down universities, forced a delay in the Detroit bankruptcy case, and closed restaurants, shops and other businesses across the region.<\/em>“<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Crain’s Detroit Business\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0Tuesday, January 7<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
This Polar Vortex reminds me of life on Pine Ridge when I learned to teach at Red CLoud Indian School. \u00a0When it got to -10\u00ba \u00a0or 20\u00ba \u00a0the moisture in your nostrils froze as soon as you stepped outside and you felt a little ping as your nose hairs went stiff. \u00a0 The past few days remind me of those days in my 20ies.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
And suggest another Joy Harjo poem. \u00a0Harjo often uses winter to remind that seeking grace, or in today’s poem, seeking mercy, requires unblinking realism. \u00a0Harjo’s hard edges in “Mercy” can open the senses to the labor of turning toward a semester of work in weather that tempts us to stay under the covers and flinch from the brave encounter of students with faculty, students on probation with deans’ offices, of \u00a0the facilities crew with snow plows.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
Mercy<\/strong><\/div>\n

\n<\/strong><\/div>\n
Mercy<\/div>\n
on this morning where in the air is a flash<\/div>\n
of what could be the salvation of spring.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
After all this winter,<\/div>\n
I mean, it wasn’t just devil snow that rode us hard.<\/div>\n
Mail me to jamaica.<\/div>\n
I want to lie out on steaming beaches.<\/div>\n
Find my way back through glacier ice another way.<\/div>\n
Forget the massacres, proclamations of war,<\/div>\n
rumors of wars.<\/div>\n
I won’t pour rifle shot through the guts of someone<\/div>\n
I’m told is my enemy.<\/div>\n
Hell, my own enemy is right here.<\/div>\n
Can you look inside, see past the teeth worn down<\/div>\n
by meat and anger,<\/div>\n
can you see?<\/div>\n
Sometimes the only filter<\/div>\n
is a dead cat in the road.<\/div>\n
Sucks your belly up to your teeth<\/div>\n
in fear of what might happen to you; \u00a0all your sins<\/div>\n
chase you in the street,<\/div>\n
string what you thought was the only you<\/div>\n
into a greasy field. \u00a0I want to enter the next world<\/div>\n
filled with food, wine<\/div>\n
and the finest fishing.<\/div>\n
Safe, so safe, like the beach in Jamaica<\/div>\n
where bloodstains have already<\/div>\n
soaked through to the bottom of the Caribbean<\/div>\n
so you don’t have to see<\/div>\n
unless this light<\/div>\n
becomes a bayonet of sound, hands of fire<\/div>\n
to lead you to yourself<\/div>\n
until you cry<\/div>\n
mercy.<\/div>\n
In Mad Love and War<\/span>\u00a0 1990<\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

p.s. What we begin on this January 7, one day late with a – 11\u00ba (wind chill – 33\u00ba) requires of us — students and faculty and staff and administrators – a bravery that continues even after we can put away our ear muffs and thick gloves. \u00a0 We are a university. \u00a0Blessings on the new semester and the new year.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
john sj<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Tuesday, January 7 “A whirlpool of frigid, dense air known as a polar vortex descended Monday into Michigan, pummeling metro Detroit with a dangerous cold that shut down universities, forced a delay in the Detroit bankruptcy case, and closed restaurants, … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":139,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[11641],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.udmercy.edu\/poetry\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/213"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.udmercy.edu\/poetry\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.udmercy.edu\/poetry\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.udmercy.edu\/poetry\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/139"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.udmercy.edu\/poetry\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=213"}],"version-history":[{"count":13,"href":"https:\/\/sites.udmercy.edu\/poetry\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/213\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":219,"href":"https:\/\/sites.udmercy.edu\/poetry\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/213\/revisions\/219"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.udmercy.edu\/poetry\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=213"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.udmercy.edu\/poetry\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=213"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.udmercy.edu\/poetry\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=213"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}