where the ordinary and the extraordinary meet
2022
POEM
Myanmar Spring
FEBRUARY 18, 2022
On Sunday, February 13, 2022 --- one year and thirteen days after the military coup which overthrew the fledgling democratic government in Myanmar --- I watched a benefit sh0wing of Padauk Myanmar Spring.. As we waited for the film to begin, a friend told of an airstrike and raid on an orphanage in the hills just the night before. Her mother had dedicated her life to supporting this orphanage. The newly-built structures and nearby villagers’ homes and fields had been destroyed and three children burned alive. “What else is there to do,” asked this friend, “except listen?”
All week I struggled to write a poem that would convey the enormity of the human tragedy that is unfolding in Myanmar.. On Friday, February 18, 2022, CNN published an updated article about a swarm of yellow-headed blackbirds which plunged inexplicably to the ground in a residential area in Chihuahua, Mexico on February 7. It is thought that the birds headed down to escape the attack of a large predator, such as a peregrine falcon, and couldn’t pull back up in time. Hundreds of birds died from the impact. This brief clip gave me the concluding metaphor I was looking for...
2021
TWEET
Littleness
DECEMBER 26, 2021
Reflection on the homily of Pope Francis, Christmas 2021
a pinprick of light a distant star the 'littleness' of God
MUSING
Into the Sun
DECEMBER 16, 2021
A year-and-a-half ago, the author Pam Brown posted a poem on The Poetry Barn’s Wet Ink platform entitled “Do Not Look Directly.” It began
Sparks of light nestle in plasma swirls
tangling magnetic fields
flying into the sun is harder than leaving the solar system.
When she wrote these lines, Pam was aware that a NASA solar orbiter was already en route to the sun, but when I read her lines, I did not know this. So I wrote a spinoff on Pam’s poem which began:
Flying into the sun is
not meant for us.
Icarus tried—
and died
Today (December 21, 2021), I learned that I was wrong.
MUSING
The Football Masterclass
NOVEMBER 30,, 2021
As a former soccer mom in Italy, I retain a passing interest in European football. Thus, a recent news item reporting that an elite English team was in serious trouble, piqued my curiosity. Since early October this team had inexplicably started losing game after game in embarrassing fashion. The manager, a beloved former player, was reluctantly let go. Ten days later, after three grueling games in quick succession, the team had miraculously stopped losing and begun to regain its confidence. How did this happen?
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ESSAY
Beyond Dread
NOVEMBER 16, 2021
This review essay on BED, Elizabeth Metzger''s prize-winning poetry chapbook (Tupelo Press, North Adams, Mass., 2021) examines her preoccupation with dread and explores her use of poetic language that is 'beyond language' to enter the hidden world of the spirit, where dread has no place..
POEM
Me and My Shadow
NOVEMBER 2,, 2021
Following the passing of a dear friend at the beginning of 2018, and the arrival of a shipment transporting my worldly belongs from Arizona to Chiang Mai, I embarked on a major clean-up of possessions of no great value other than the memories associated with them. Me and My Shadow describes the feelings this process triggered.
NEWS
OCTOBER 26, 2021
ACCEPTED FOR PUBLICATION by Tupelo Quarterly
Beyond Dread., A Review Essay for Elizabeth's Metzger's prize-winning chapbood, BED, Tupelo Press, North Adams, Mass, 2020.
POEM
New Year 2021
OCTOBER 26, 2021
NEW YEAR 2021 - a difficult year coming to an end a new one arriving full of uncertainties. To celebrate pr not to celebrate? As I prepared for the New Year's Eve Party, I felt that I was Floating in Time. Upon arriving, I found myself seated next to a stranger who regaled me with stories of becoming a bodyguard by learning the Essence of Shaolin Zen. On the way home, in a good mood, my driver explained how to say Happy New Year, the Thai Way, and why it is important to always bring in the New Year with a smile.
NEWS
OCTOBER 26,, 2021
RELAUNCH OF BARBARA'S PLACE
This site was first launched in mid-2020. Then two blood clot episodes intervened. It took over a year to recover fully, but last week - HURRAY - I received a clean bill of health! The story of my "Adventures in the World of Stroke" will appear here soon. In the meantime, I'll be posting material that's already written or nearly finished. Look forward to receiving your comments.