Paul E Nelson presenting at Cascadia Poetry Festival 8, photo by Leszek Chudzinski
“Paul formally received the Mahayana precepts of Zen Buddhism in 2023, becoming a lay practitioner within the tradition, but I believe he had long lived in accord with them. His poetry, in its sensitivity, its humility, and its deep listening, embodies practice-realization — the understanding that practice and awakening are not separate. His writing was his zazen. This collection, FLEXIBLE MIND, is more than a book. It is a continuation of that practice. A testament to a man who lives by attention, who bows to language but does not cling to it, who seeks what lays beyond words by walking straight into them.”– Kosho Itagaki, Soto Zen Priest
419. to Morgan Harlow, Barneveld, WI – Vole in the Past Hole
418. to Susan Tkach, Rochester, NY – Squirrel in the Buddha Pore
Interview with Nate Mackey
Ominous Animacy: Notes on an interview with Nate Mackey Interviewing Allen Ginsberg in 1994 introduced me to a deeper sense of Open Form. Interviewing Michael McClure in 1995 introduced me to...
417. to Teresa Jarmick, Kenmore, WA – Climate Refugee Secession
416. to Brendan McBreen, Auburn, WA – Mood Indigo, Mexican Blues
415. to Kay Kinghammer, Seattle, WA – The Awakening of Any Individual…
414. to Sharmagne Leland-St. John, Arlington, WA – Percussion Painting
413. to Linda Crosfield, Castlegar, BC – Wind eeeeeee
Homage to Carl Sandburg (Visit to his only Chicago home)
Mer, Ella and I are staying at my sister Barb's house while in Chicago. She lives near Lawrence and Damen on the north side of town. We arrived here Tuesday night and she told us about the Carl...
412. to Patricia Smith, Byhalia, MS – Dangerous Subversives
Promoting American Prophets
Dear Blog-reader, I have several events at which I will be promoting American Prophets and I hope to see you at one or two. February 3, 3pm - Elliott Bay Book Company. 1521 Tenth Avenue Seattle....
War Elegy 2b (After William Everson)
War Elegy 2b (The Lottery, January 23, 2019) In our end time, the days of pre-casino capitalism behind us against the cultural tinnitus nursing connection to non-local mind we seek to release all...
American Prophets @ Elliott Bay Books
I am delighted to be making a presentation about my new book of transcribed interviews, American Prophets, at the legendary Elliott Bay Books, Sunday, February 3, at 3pm. I'm hoping to play some...
The interview I conducted with Sam O’Hana, a Ph.D. student at CUNY, is immensely critical and immensely validating for the work we do at the Cascadia Poetics Lab. At its core, the discussion is about whether writing is for people of means, or if it can be people who have skill and something to say. It means the literary gatekeepers have failed us and have a role in perpetuating neoliberalism in North America which has paved the way for authoritarianism. The interview is available as a podcast here and as a YouTube video here. Below, I have pasted in the transcript and here is my introduction to Sam O’Hana and his topic.