The 2River View was one of the first publications to which I submitted when I started publishing in earnest last fall. The poems I submitted did not make it; however, I like to think that, because I received my response just before the reading period ended, my work had made it onto a short list of strong candidates but was bumped by something stronger. Although that conclusion has nothing to do with reality, it's still a nice bit of solace.
I was checking in on the 2River View's website to see what its current reading period is when I stumbled across two poems by Jose Angel Araguz. I was startled by the wondrous everyday-ness of the imagery. Particularly, in "Hansel to his muse" the weight of the argument breaks "off in pieces / That trail behind" and each subsequent line break adds another reading, another sense of the readings- divergent and coterminous. I won't post it here, I haven't asked permission. But you can read it in the Spring 2011 2River View, or find another piece of his in American Life in Poetry.
Sean,
ReplyDeleteA friend who happened to be looking for me online told me about your blog entry here and I just wanted to say thank you for your post. It isn't often that one gets to find out about the effect of one's own work. Specifically, your words on "Hansel to his muse" hit upon something that took me six years to figure out. I had almost given up and then one day - pow - the line breaks happened and the poem gave itself over a little. Your finding that meaning is as much a testament to your consideration as a reader as to my determined, fumbling efforts to get it down in ink. I read some of your other posts and your enthusiasm for poetry is admirable. Keep it going. Thank you again for your kind words.
Best,
Jose
Jose,
ReplyDeleteSorry for the delay in responding. I'm glad that your friend stumbled on my comments - it is rare that a poet gets a chance to hear what a complete stranger thinks of his work. Thank you for reading through my other posts and the encouraging words. I look forward to coming across more of your work in the future.
Sincerely,
Sean