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! We Wear the Mask We Wear the Mask is a resilient and entrancing tug-of-war with external perceptions of self. 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. Laurentian Shield This portrait of a rocky, silent Canadian landscape speaks to the country’s limitations and its potential. These Poems, She Said Can an argument be the foundation of a love poem? Robert Bringhurst certainly thinks so! 400: Coming Home You can’t help thinking about your life on a long stretch of highway. The Days of the Unicorns Phyllis Webb beautifully writes an ode to the majestic unicorn. I Carried My Father Across the Sea An elegy, both surreal and heartfelt, that explores a son’s grief over his father’s death. Pale Blue Cover In this nostalgic poem, the speaker reminisces about the author Matt Cohen. 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. 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. 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. Tide Both stark and tender, this poem is about Reena Virk, a BC teen of South Asian descent who was assaulted and murdered by her peers in 1997. Guanahani, 11 This bracing ballad (re)considers the beauty and history of the Caribbean island where Christopher Columbus first landed. Common Magic Do you ever wonder how anything gets done when we’re all swirling in our own galaxies of thought and experience? This poem does too. For My Best Friend One way to grieve is to give tribute, perhaps even before the person you are grieving is completely gone. The Visions of Stone Carrier In this dreamlike piece exploring memory and primogeniture, N. Scott Momaday casts a haunting spell that transports the reader through mystery and reminiscence. Two Hours on the Train In this deceptively simple poem, a poet on a journey transcends time. 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? At the Centre In this poem of a woman in deep repose, her seeds of self-care begin to blossom. For My Best Friend One way to grieve is to give tribute, perhaps even before the person you are grieving is completely gone. the knowing Connie Fife cryptically combines land and body in this poem exploring connection to place and past. Let the Ponies Out In this poem, a dramatic monologue, the speaker implores their father to do something both real and more real in its imagining. Two Hours on the Train In this deceptively simple poem, a poet on a journey transcends time. One Art When loss feels inevitable, sometimes the only thing to do is write it down… Two Words: A Wedding bpNichol presents life as a river of ever-changing words and asks us to step in. from Cross River . Pick Lotus Sometimes a simple wish granted, especially a final one, can change everything. 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. One Art When loss feels inevitable, sometimes the only thing to do is write it down… Yellowjacket “Yellowjacket” explores the eerie way the dead make themselves at home in our lives. The Bull Moose A moose's final, tortured moments unfold in a series of brutal images. A Net I Seek to Hold the Wind A wildfire is personified as a ravenous, insatiable creature. Joseph Kidney contemplates loss and the act of continued living alongside an unfolding disaster. another set of instructions An abstract musing on world-building, becoming, water and rebirth. A poem that asks you to pay attention to your surroundings and yourself. Sonoma A dreamlike sense of the uncanny hangs over this poem of an encounter on a coastal highway. Pagination « First First page ‹ Previous Previous page 1 2 3 4 5 6 Language English