...Poets do bring a lot to their communities, though, and not just in the high-minded ways Audre Lorde imagines. The workshops and readings essentially amount to adult education; many of the events are very popular with adults who, like the actors in Mandel’s novel, hunger for some cultural stimulation.
...Town poet laureates also perform a solemn civic duty when they are called upon to compose an “occasional” or “custom poem” to commemorate an event that is significant to the community. By giving a name to the thoughts that come to all of us, the poems give us all a common voice and a language that we can share. Without such a common voice a community becomes nothing more than a group of people bound by geography.
https://www.sandycarlson.netPeople and their Poems is a podcast about the poems that make a difference in our world. In each episode, Sandy talks with a person who has been influenced by poetry and become a poet or a supporter of this literary form, discussing the poems or lyrics that became their mentors, or their muses, as they have explored the world of the poem. You'll also hear the poems of the poets who are your neighbors. Published every two weeks; scroll for latest episodes.
Upcoming Season 1 schedule: Nancy McMillan (11/12), Nadine Cascini and Jim Hinkle (11/26), Jim Kelleher (12/10), Katie Schneider (12/24)
Subscribe by adding People and their Poems to your favorite podcasting tool using this RSS feed (https://anchor.fm/s/a8bcf388/podcast/rss), or use one of the services below online or on your mobile device. Anchor.fm
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Speaking of Poetry, a local TV series featuring poets and their work