These poems each have a set of guided questions, related videos that allow for deeper investigation, and suggested writing activities. We'll be adding more poems here soon! Modestine A woman writes a tender poem about her dad’s struggle with dementia. from Cross River . Pick Lotus Sometimes a simple wish granted, especially a final one, can change everything. Blank Sonnet Set in Halifax of the 1930s, this sensual, inebriated love poem plays with the sonnet form. Application Form Identity is elusive. Maybe it doesn’t exist at all. The ABG (Able-Bodied Gaze) The abled-bodied gaze is an intrusive force in this poem, making a spectacle of a disabled body and attempting to reduce them to their impairment. Before the Birth of One of Her Children This frank, devout poem confronts the risks facing a 17th-century woman in childbirth. Opus 75, Sestina in B-flat for the Glockenspiel A silent glockenspiel plays out a teenage girl’s anxieties about growing up and fitting in. The New Experience Join the speaker on a whirlwind journey towards a surprising realization. I’ve Tasted My Blood In this thunderous poem, the speaker proclaims his rage, anguish, and hope in the face of war and oppression. The Swimmer’s Moment Will you choose to observe from the rim of the whirlpool, or its centre? Cold Solace Even after many months in the freezer, a honey cake calls up strong memories. I saw a perfect tree today Lillian Allen praises the rampant diversity of trees in Northern Ontario and asks us to see perfection in difference. Pale Blue Cover In this nostalgic poem, the speaker reminisces about the author Matt Cohen. Buen Esqueleto With its allusions and repetitions, “Buen Esqueleto” speaks powerfully on behalf of families caught in the contemporary U.S. border conflict. The Problem With Being a Box Too Small for Its Contents Misch expounds the unbearable work needed after a breakup: to separate from your lost love and “rejoin yourselves…even when you don’t want to.” aubade for the BPD subreddit user who wrote can people with BPD love? The stunningly cruel comments of an internet forum reverberate throughout a sleepless night The Bull Moose A moose's final, tortured moments unfold in a series of brutal images. From Correspondences Anne Michaels challenges us to find new maps to think about old experiences. Sometimes a Voice (1) On a hot summer afternoon, Danny jumped off the boathouse roof without thinking of the consequences. Famous In Famous, Naomi Nye speaks to the relationship between objects and the ideas they represent. She is as famous to the poem as the poem is famous its words. Fast Commute Laurie Graham weathers an incongruous ice storm in this poem-excerpt that asks us to pause and understand that we are present here, “and with this understanding to start to hear.” Death of a Young Son by Drowning Blurring time but clarifying feeling, this poem gives voice to a mother who loses a son and gains a country. At the Centre In this poem of a woman in deep repose, her seeds of self-care begin to blossom. The Potato Harvest This lonely poem is about so much more than a bare field. Jesse’s Farm Sadiqa de Meijer reckons with environmental degradation and motherhood in this poem that asks whether showing our children “the beloved world” is enough. My Poem Without Me in It Imagining herself removed from her own poem, a poet realizes how poetry gives her the space to create herself. a good day The poet recalls the day she heard her father would die. Picking Up a Dandelion A short and poignant poem, stretching out a brief moment of beauty. A Breakfast for Barbarians Come sit at this mythical table where guests eat the world’s mysteries for breakfast. The Lonely Land In this free verse poem, snapshots of a wild landscape show that beauty and conflict are not mutually exclusive — and that one may be derived from the other. Full Metal Oji-Cree That’s ok, our robomocassins will outlive you nine times over. My Grandmother Washes Her Feet in the Sink of the Bathroom at Sears A clash of cultures in a department store bathroom showcases pride and power in the towns matrons as well as the space in the middle where the speaker lives Journey of the Magi One of the three wise men who travelled to Bethlehem upon the birth of Jesus Christ describes his version of the story and the emotional upheaval he experiences from witnessing a miracle that shatters his previous beliefs and way of life. Someday I’ll Love Ocean Vuong In this tender poem of healing, care and remembrance, Ocean Vuong reaches out to his younger self. Dulce et Decorum Est Wilfred Owen brilliantly uses rhyme and meter in this brutal poem about a poison gas attack during WWI. I Am The speaker longs to escape himself and to find freedom from within and without Dear Updike Evelyn Lau powerfully describes the world around her in order to grieve the loss of a beloved writer. Marshlands Quietly pause to take in the colours and sounds of a marsh. 1992 Sometimes a scent or a site or a taste can sweep you up into the past. This finely honed narrative poem knows what that’s like. 400: Coming Home You can’t help thinking about your life on a long stretch of highway. Pagination 1 2 3 4 Next › Next page Last » Last page Language English