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! Top The poet remembers a father lost long before his death. 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. Dear Updike Evelyn Lau powerfully describes the world around her in order to grieve the loss of a beloved writer. 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 Stone Diary A love poem to a stone takes on deeper, rockier meanings. Salmon Courage Deep bravery can emerge amid clashing familial hopes and truths. M. NourbeSe Philip shows us how. 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… 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. Poor Speaker Yep, the speaker gets what you're trying to say. How Not to Spill Do you hold your hands shut, or do you let everything spill out? The Trick The body and the mind are intimately linked and cannot be divorced from each other. 400: Coming Home You can’t help thinking about your life on a long stretch of highway. 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 Cold Solace Even after many months in the freezer, a honey cake calls up strong memories. Sometimes a Voice (1) On a hot summer afternoon, Danny jumped off the boathouse roof without thinking of the consequences. Vancouver Lights This wartime poem looks out at Vancouver’s nighttime skyline and contemplates humanity. the knowing Connie Fife cryptically combines land and body in this poem exploring connection to place and past. the ghosts of women once girls Poet Aja Monet reveals both gladness and sadness from a little girl enraptured by literature. Five Postcards from Jericho Postcards to regret, to time, to anyone at all 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.” Other In Other, Livesay breaks free of patriarchy’s hold and ventures into landscapes of mountain, cedar forests, night skies, and the fierce interior of her spirit. 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. Laurentian Shield This portrait of a rocky, silent Canadian landscape speaks to the country’s limitations and its potential. Beat! Beat! Drums! With rich bombastic language and Whitman's trademark sprawling lines, this poem rallies troops for war. Echolalia Exploring the tension between desire and satisfaction, this is “a poem that you have to kiss your way through without being kissed,” says Williams. sturgeon Intense with empathy, the poem places poet and struggling fish in direct physical relation. 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 Days of the Unicorns Phyllis Webb beautifully writes an ode to the majestic unicorn. I Feel the Sun This poem articulates the poet’s intense feeling about the sunlight after going through a long winter. Two Words: A Wedding bpNichol presents life as a river of ever-changing words and asks us to step in. Money A museum coin collection prompts a reflection on the captivating nature of currency. grass In his short, funny poem, Ward Maxwell asks us to step on the grass, saying “it deserves it.” But isn’t that the point of grass? Sweet Like a Crow This tumbling, outrageous list poem is a backhanded ode to a child’s less-than-melodious singing voice. Letters In this tender poem tracing a lost love, the speaker holds on by letting things go… I Lost My Talk How can you speak your deepest truth in a language that doesn’t understand you? Someday I’ll Love Ocean Vuong In this tender poem of healing, care and remembrance, Ocean Vuong reaches out to his younger self. The Swimmer’s Moment Will you choose to observe from the rim of the whirlpool, or its centre? Not the Music In Not in the Music, Crozier explores the inviolable: the sacred parts of ourselves that we cherish as personal sanctuaries. Homage to the Mineral of the Onion (I) Could a vegetable be the antidote to war? This poem thinks so. An English Speaking Doctor Translates the Concerns of his Patient with Google/Un Docteur Anglophone Traduit Les Inquiétudes De Son Patient Avec Google This bilingual poem expresses the limitations of understanding across languages when experiences become lost in translation. Pagination « First First page ‹ Previous Previous page 1 2 3 4 Next › Next page Last » Last page Language English