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! 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 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. i am graffiti This poem vibrates with anger and defiance in the wake of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. Full Metal Oji-Cree That’s ok, our robomocassins will outlive you nine times over. Vancouver Lights This wartime poem looks out at Vancouver’s nighttime skyline and contemplates humanity. Northern Light A poem about belonging when one doesn't feel like they are completely at home Homage to the Mineral of the Onion (I) Could a vegetable be the antidote to war? This poem thinks so. 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. 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. susiya Music binds and refreshes community I Have Something to Tell You In this surreal poem, a man made of cameras brings his unexpected concerns into sharper focus. A Breakfast for Barbarians Come sit at this mythical table where guests eat the world’s mysteries for breakfast. The Fatigue Fatigue is often the first sign something is wrong with one's body. Fatigue looms larger than life in this poem which grapples with meds, family, and coping. Editing the Prairie If the prairie was a written story, imagine the rejection letter it might get! 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. The Powwow at the End of the World Sherman Alexie slams the environmental destruction of settler-colonialism as we travel on an upstream course towards the powwow at the end of the world. Not the Music In Not in the Music, Crozier explores the inviolable: the sacred parts of ourselves that we cherish as personal sanctuaries. Late Prayer Erin Robinsong delivers a quiet and fierce prayer for life on Earth in an age of ecological destruction and oligarchical domination One Art When loss feels inevitable, sometimes the only thing to do is write it down… Poor Speaker Yep, the speaker gets what you're trying to say The Trick The body and the mind are intimately linked and cannot be divorced from each other. Laurentian Shield This portrait of a rocky, silent Canadian landscape speaks to the country’s limitations and its potential. Before the Birth of One of Her Children This frank, devout poem confronts the risks facing a 17th-century woman in childbirth. The Bow What flows through a name, and a name, and a name? Someday I'll Love Ocean Vuong In this tender poem of healing, care and remembrance, Ocean Vuong reaches out to his younger self. 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.” Marshlands Quietly pause to take in the colours and sounds of a marsh. Pale Blue Cover In this nostalgic poem, the speaker reminisces about the author Matt Cohen. Community Garden Seeking to escape internet trolls the speaker turns her eye to the garden I’ll Teach You Cree By sharing with us the untranslatable aspects of Cree culture, Scofield immerses the reader with the sensorial experiences that deepen the bonds of community. I Am The speaker longs to escape himself and to find freedom from within and without Where There’s a Wall Both beauty and violence are just on the other side of the wall. dont worry yr hair Having a bad day? This uplifting poem about the power of our inner potential should light a spark. But I’m No One But I’m No one is a reflection on our tendency to fear death and the manifestation of this fear through uncanny beliefs. A Stone Diary A love poem to a stone takes on deeper, rockier meanings. The Tyger In the woods at night, the speaker talks to a magical animal… 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. At the Centre In this poem of a woman in deep repose, her seeds of self-care begin to blossom. Mantra of No Return It is possible to travel home when one has never been there. This poem does. Language English