This week, I am discussing a poem by my friend Obi Martin—“Fixed Song.” In looking for a method by which to dissect the poem, I immediately gave significance to the title, which I think suggests the controlling idea of the poem. Continue reading . . . “The Utterness of Creation”
“Jabbok,” the name of the river that Jacob crossed, and where he wrestled God, means “he will empty.” He will empty of what? He will empty. Continue reading . . . “He Will Empty”
On the clock of the year it is high noon and the world is a steady wealth of green and blue and all manner of teeming, trickling life. But once not long ago it was winter, and simple, and white. Continue reading . . . “Snow Temple Summer”
There is still time to sign up for our Literature Camp on August 2nd through 4th! We have some updates to share that we hope will whet your appetites for a good weekend of literature and art. Continue reading . . . “Literature Camp Announcement”
Irrelevant: An Essay for July 4th
It being a national holiday celebrating something like freedom, let us voluntarily take upon ourselves the duties of free citizens, and consider how we should be serving the good of our society. Let us be relevant. Continue reading . . . “Irrelevant: An Essay for July 4th”
The title and beginning line of Dylan Thomas’s poem “And Death Shall Have No Dominion” appears to be an allusion to the apostle Paul’s letter to the Roman church. Continue reading . . . “The Madman and Dominion”
“Like a piece of ice on a hot stove, a poem must writhe on its own meaning.” —Robert Frost
(I got it wrong; he wrote “ride,” not “writhe.” Whatever. Writhing is a livelier form of riding. Continue reading . . . “The Melting of a Poem”
A year ago, I attended a writers’ conference in Washington, DC, with the Hedge Apple Magazine, which I was editing at the time. The cost of the conference covered a free subscription to a magazine of my choice, and I selected American Short Fiction, since I wanted to be more familiar with the fiction that is being published today. Continue reading . . . “On Happy Endings”
Explication of “Love Calls Us to the Things of This World”
“Awakening” is a metaphor often used to characterize the life lived fully. For many of us in techno-informational society, it’s too easy to spend too much of our lives walking around in a malaise of unclarity and apathy, hobbled by plethora-induced stupors. Continue reading . . . “Explication of “Love Calls Us to the Things of This World””
Let us praise our Maker, with true passion extol Him.
Let the whole creation give out another sweetness,
Nicer in our nostrils, a novel fragrance
From cleansed occasions in accord together Continue reading . . . “Poetry Explication: Anthem”
Above dark seas of chaos beneath, below an ocean of crystal above, art is a lost gull flying.
Some wish to offer it a home—to give it bounds and curb the wandering flight. Another believes it must be free to fly wherever it has wings to fly. Which do Christians feel? Continue reading . . . “The Liberality of Art”
Welcome to the first of the Curator’s weekly blog posts. You will find an invitation to the future of this venture after you hear four confessions from four of our editors. By way of introduction, we assigned ourselves each to write one or two short paragraphs on why we find poetry worthy. Continue reading . . . “Welcome, and Why Poetry?”
This summer, we are hosting a literature seminar at a beautiful mansion in Franklin, PA. The seminar will provide opportunities for readers and writers of literature to meet and to hear from people who have put time and thought into what the arts mean to us as Anabaptists. Continue reading . . . “Literature Camp 2019”
