Ashok Karra - Encouragement (Page 15)

Michael Chitwood, "Men Throwing Bricks"

What does happiness look like, feel like?

Kay Ryan, "Blandeur"

...I’ve been to the Grand Canyon. What took me aback was how colorful it was. As if it were a source of rainbows within the Earth itself.

poetry

Jane Hirshfield, "A Day Is Vast"

“A day is vast. / Until noon. / Then it’s over.”

art

Georgia O'Keeffe, "Road - Mesa with Mist" (1961)

How bright, how textured, obscurity is.

poetry

Kay Ryan, "Linens"

We believe in the behavior which looks positive. We believe so much that we find signs. Signs of something we wish was real.

poetry

Deborah A. Bennett, "For the heart / very small things"

Charity, I’ve learned, is near meaningless without a charitable spirit.

poetry

Robert Frost's "Mowing," or The Danger of an Uncritical Approach to Great Books

Welcome! Have Some Links Hi everyone-- I did not realize until now how many of you are activists. I've been fortunate to teach in classrooms where my students were open about the change they seek. It's so important to get students to talk to each other,

poetry

Claire Needell, "Passage"

I've been staring at Claire Needell [https://twitter.com/claireneedell]'s poem "Passage" for a few days now. It's an incredible work of art, and I hope you'll join me in trying to respond to it. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- I have hopes for

poetry

Dorothy Aldis, "When I Was Lost"

I still walk nervous. I’ve done a lot to be calmer, to learn to breathe. Exercise, meditation, reflection. On a larger level: the ability to prioritize. But adulthood in this world, at this time, is a nonstop creation of traps. Whether I’m productive or not, expectations emerge from

kyla houbolt

Kyla Houbolt, "Slippery;" Emily Dickinson, "Your thoughts don't have words every day" (1452)

As Houbolt documents: “that thing I meant to say / slips out of my grasp again / I say something anyway.”

trump

Is Trump harmless at Mar-a-Lago?

I hate the amount of attention Trump continues to get. However, he is a study in human depravity and a weathervane for American politics. Below, I consider Ashley Feinberg's report of Mar-a-Lago [https://www.trashberg.com/p/what-exactly-is-trump-doing-at-mar], where it almost feels like Trump will remain a giant

william bortz

William Bortz, "Piety"

Below, I offer a reading of William Bortz's poem "Piety." I am curious to hear about your experience with religion and how it impacts your thinking. ashok DOT raj DOT karra AT gmail.com. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- What is piety? It's not a word I use

tressie mcmillan cottom

Tressie McMillan Cottom, "New Money"

Tressie McMillan Cottom’s essay “New Money” [https://tressie.substack.com/p/new-money] is another one of those Du mußt dein Leben ändern moments. I hope you’ll make some notes on your reaction after reading and share. I’m still stuck on her first paragraph: > People say they

yi lei

Yi Lei, "Postperpetual"

Note: I am going to be trying for the next few weeks to figure out how this format works. In this newsletter, I'm offering three things. First, a reading of a poem. Close attention to a few intricately woven words. Then, a prompt for those of you who

philosophy

A "genuine culture" for philosophy?

Currently reading Nietzsche's "Philosophy in the Tragic Age of the Greeks," translated by Marianne Cowan. This passage about philosophy and "genuine culture" caught my eye. It invites immediate comparison between our age and the ages we imagine. My initial questions: What do we feel