30 Poems in November

Pokey is writing to raise money! Not for me, that would be ridiculous (sadly), but for the Center for New Americans and their family literacy program. CNA works to: provide the underserved immigrant, refugee and migrant communities of Massachusetts' Pioneer Valley with education and resources to learn English, become involved community members, and obtain tools necessary … Continue reading 30 Poems in November

The Sound of One Leaf Falling

Here be the link to my latest column at Hilltown Families about poetry for families to learn and (hopefully) love. Enjoy!

Berkshire Word Fest

Saturday, September 15, 4:00pm Pokey reads! Berkshire Wordfest The Mount, Lenox, MA There are so many good things about this: 1) I get to read with Jess Greenbaum, whose work I love. You will, too! 2) They have many excellent poets on the schedule, including Marie Gauthier, Mark Wunderlich, Peter Filkins, Karen Chase, Michele Gillett … Continue reading Berkshire Word Fest

and they went to sea in a sieve

My latest One Clover & a Bee column is live over at Hilltown Families, in which I celebrate nonsense and bad behavior via Edward Lear and Maurice Sendak's, "The Jumblies" (which Pokey believes is actually a poem about being an artist) as well as other poems for families to learn & love in the collection, … Continue reading and they went to sea in a sieve

a list & an extremely large umbrella

A smart Mom-friend posted a link on Facebook to a post, Things I Want My 10 Year Old Daughter to Know. I followed the link to Huff Post and from there to Lindsey Mead's blog: A Design So Vast. Pokey thinks the list is so spot on she had to share it with you. Follow … Continue reading a list & an extremely large umbrella

honey, let’s have rilke put them to bed tonight

My second One Clover & A Bee column at Hilltown Families is up: Poems to (Possibly) Sleep On, in which I argue for reading poetry aloud as a way to put your kids to sleep. No, not because poetry is BORING, but because a) not everybody loves to hear themselves sing, and b) it means … Continue reading honey, let’s have rilke put them to bed tonight

moms like to party: arts night out!

Just in case your Sunday doesn't include time for you, the Mother, to relax and have fun the way you like to have fun instead of the way you're supposed to have fun on the holiday that is purported to celebrate motherhood but often somehow includes extra chores and/or commitments for the aforementioned honoree—and if you … Continue reading moms like to party: arts night out!

one clover & a bee

Pokey has another part-time gig: One Clover & A Bee (thank you Emily Dickinson!) is the name of my new column as a contributing writer at HilltownFamilies.org. I'll be writing once a month about how families can learn and say poems and just generally make poetry part of their lives and not be afraid of it. … Continue reading one clover & a bee

ma po fest 2012

Lots of great poetry in Salem next weekend, including western MA poets Maya Janson, Diana Gordon, Marie Gauthier and Annie Boutelle! Get yourself there!

Detachment Parenting

This morning as I drove along the river that winds through our little town I was noticing how, six months after Tropical Storm Irene swept through, the river’s path is dramatically altered. Shallow, sleepy meanders with the occasional spot deep enough to submerge your body on a hot summer day have been replaced with steep … Continue reading Detachment Parenting