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
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Two Anthologies
I was delighted to participate in the open mic called Poetry Bridge, Wednesday, October 25, 2017, at the C&P Coffeehouse aka: West Seattle's Living Room. Leopoldo Seguel holds court, introduces...
Two Countries (Interview with Tina Schumann)
Two-Countries: US Daughters & Sons of Immigrant Parents is an anthology of flash memoir, personal essays, and poetry edited by Tina Schumann. The daughter of a Salvadoran immigrant has gathered...
Baptist Critique of Alabama “Christians”
I am not a regular browser of the Baptist News website, but thanks to a mild Twitter habit I cam across an article that makes SO MUCH SENSE to me regarding the death of real Christianity in the U.S....
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.