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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Warning: CA Conrad Trigger Warnings
I read with some amusement poet CA Conrad's Facebook status complaining about a request that he offer "Trigger Warnings" before he gives a poetry reading. The update: Of course smart ass that I am,...
Notes On Gone South
I was given a charge by Michael McClure when I started my graduate work as an independent study student in 2004. He said to not limit my search to the U.S. Taking his advice turned me on to poets...
Seattle, Cascadia “Last Stronghold for Spiritual Medicine”
The man known by many as Beaver Chief came from a long line of Indian Doctors. In this interview I did with Beaver Chief, recorded in August 1998, he discussed his incarceration, his belief that the...
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.