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! Radishes Ange Mlinko’s consideration of the radish introduces a constellation of characters and feelings, inviting reflection on nostalgia and the passing of time. Autobiography of My Hungers A poem that explores private desire and longing, and the pain of homophobia. Reluctance Even after you’ve jumped all the fences, climbed all the hills, and looked at the world, it can be hard to accept how you feel… 400: Coming Home You can’t help thinking about your life on a long stretch of highway. Where There’s a Wall Both beauty and violence are just on the other side of the wall. The Potato Harvest This lonely poem is about so much more than a bare field. World Town Layers of memory paint a moving, vibrant portrait of one man’s time spent in a seaside town with his father. 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 Blue Guitar In this glosa poem, P.K. Page strums out questions about being an artist and telling the truth. from Exhibits from the American Water Museum Natalie Diaz mourns the violence committed against the Mojave people (and by extension, Indigenous people across North America) and bodies of water, inextricably connected 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. 400: Coming Home You can’t help thinking about your life on a long stretch of highway. The Bull Moose A moose's final, tortured moments unfold in a series of brutal images. Five Postcards from Jericho Postcards to regret, to time, to anyone at all Chemo Side Effects: Memory The stop-start, grasping form of this poem mirrors the speaker's struggle to reconcile herself with one of the side effects of cancer treatment. I’ve Tasted My Blood In this thunderous poem, the speaker proclaims his rage, anguish, and hope in the face of war and oppression. 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.” Declaration of Intent Rita Wong invokes the "sacred bond" of water in this poem that invites us to learn from watersheds, and to act in their defense. The New Experience Join the speaker on a whirlwind journey towards a surprising realization. I Feel the Sun This poem articulates the poet’s intense feeling about the sunlight after going through a long winter. Before the Birth of One of Her Children This frank, devout poem confronts the risks facing a 17th-century woman in childbirth. Childhood For Aracelis Girmay, “Childhood” is a place we can visit in our memories—and perhaps a place that moves on without us. 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. Two Hours on the Train In this deceptively simple poem, a poet on a journey transcends time. Fear of Snakes The life of a snake and the memory of girlhood trauma are told in sinuously entwined language. A Stone Diary A love poem to a stone takes on deeper, rockier meanings. Bad Brown Girl The poem tells the story of a young Arab woman caught between her culture and her North American upbringing. Happy Birthday Moon “Happy Birthday Moon” is a pantoum poem that captures a tender moment of a father reading a story with his deaf son. An Innocent Little Girl Fevziye Rahgozar Barlas captures a snapshot of child marriage, its cultural and economic context, and its physical and emotional aftermath. Two Words: A Wedding bpNichol presents life as a river of ever-changing words and asks us to step in. My sister cries the sea In this poem of environmental apocalypse, Mordecai pictures a divided planet as her sister, listening to the voices of plants and fish as they mourn habitat destruction in creole Last Visit This poem invites you to discover the forms that outrage can take. The Fish A dreamy poem diving into oceanic imagery, exploring time and change. 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. From Red Doc In this poem-as-a-conversation, a man and his mother consider how the past lives on in the present. “Breathe dust…” Nearly punctuation-free, this is a breathless journey through memories of a youth spent in rural Canada. Low Tide on Grand Pré The setting sun gives rise to a treasured memory of Grand Pré in this somber, rhythmic poem. 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. Money A museum coin collection prompts a reflection on the captivating nature of currency. Buen Esqueleto With its allusions and repetitions, “Buen Esqueleto” speaks powerfully on behalf of families caught in the contemporary U.S. border conflict. Pagination 1 2 3 4 5 6 Next › Next page Last » Last page Language English