Lyricality’s Online Journal
Sky Trees Phoem by Jerry Wellik
“When I first encountered Jerry Wellik’s “Sky Trees Phoem” I questioned whether it that “h” was a typographical error…. Reading poetry helps me practice the skills of curiosity and wonder, and that increases my awareness, gratitude, and delight.
Amending an Inheritance by Beth Spencer
Amending an Inheritance by Beth Spencer is like a prayer of confession and repentance, embodying a desire for people to overcome past and repeated failings, to be and do better. You may notice the second stanza of this poem has fewer lines than the first, perhaps alluding to the universal belief that human transformation involves pruning. Also pay attention to the way she uses traditionally “religious” language to challenge patriarchal and intergenerational violence. The title tells us this poem does not disown its inheritance. Instead it redeems, insisting the heir deserved and will pass on something better.
Cocoon by Hedy Tripp
Cocoon by Hedy Tripp is a poem of lament, similar to a prayer in its expression of sorrow, springs from a hope for a future healing when today’s loss turns into “love and peace.” If you wonder what makes a poem different from an individual’s memory of an event, notice this poet’s use of repetition and the poem’s emotional sequence from love to loss to restoration. Combined, these devices allow a reader to experience the consoling back and forth momentum of a rocking cradle.
The time you invest in reading a poem is important to a poet, but more than that, it is important to our communities. To listen to a poem with the ear of your heart creates space for radical empathy to dwell among us. Thank you for paying attention to Minnesota poets and their poems.
Prayer Flags by Wendy Brown-Baéz
To compose a poem is an act of faith as bold as prayer. “Prayer Flags” illustrates that a poet will often “wonder if anyone hears my heart speaking…”
The time you invest in reading a poem is important to a poet, but more than that, it is important to our communities. To listen to a poem with the ear of your heart creates space for radical empathy to dwell among us. Thank you for paying attention to Minnesota poets and their poems.
Mo Cheol Thú (You are My Music) by Katrina Pierson
The music of love is sung so delicately in Katrina Pierson’s poem, Mo Cheol Thú. As the piece progresses, we see how the song sweetens – is strengthened – as love matures. The music exists even in mundane tasks and Katrina reminds us of this – that small things carry weight.
Crevice by Emerson Sloane
Guest editor Lane Henson writes, “I love Emerson Sloane’s poem, CREVICE, for its intense passion and imagery. The poet does not waste any words here – the power comes from the concise language, tight rhythm, and evocative sounds. Emerson’s razor-sharp focus carries us skillfully into this world she has created, that she is stirring awake, in three short stanzas.”
You did it, Frank by Bob Monahan
Bob Monahan’s You did it, Frank is a poem filled with sharp metaphors spoken softly. The contemplative nature of this piece invites the reader into the poet’s process as they struggle with the “quivering quill” of fierce inspiration and the sometimes inevitable one-that-gets-away.
Notre Dame de Paris, 1971 by Deborah Rasmussen
Deborah Rasmussen’s poem, Notre Dame de Paris, 1971, beautifully follows the ghost of young love through the cathedral’s looming architecture. This poem asks us to consider those things that are left behind – that so quickly fall apart – in the presence of what feels ancient, infallible.
Tula by Chris Santiago
May is Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) Heritage Month. Our guest editor is Su Hwang, author of Lyricality's Read Poetry 2020 selection Bodega. Chris Santiago is the author of Tula, selected by A. Van Jordan as the winner of the 2016 Lindquist & Vennum Prize for Poetry. A 2017 Finalist for the Minnesota Book Award and 2018 McKnight...
Authenticity by Jennifer Kwon Dobbs
Jennifer Kwon Dobbs is the author of two poetry collections and two chapbooks, most recently Interrogation Room (White Pine Press, 2018) mentioned in The New York Times and the recipient of the 2020 Association of Asian American Studies Book Award for Outstanding Achievement in Creative Writing: Poetry. Su Hwang selects “Authenticity” by Jennifer Kwon Dobbs.