The following was read at the Women of Resistance book launch last night, March 13th, 2018, at Strand Bookstore in NYC. I wanted to write a piece that incorporated the words of my fellow contributors with whom I read that night– Denice Frohman, Mahogany L. Browne, Dorothea Lasky and Maureen McLane– and ended up writing this essay (be sure to click on the links and read their poems in full). They are all poets I’ve read and reread, and their poems have kept my heart beating in some really trying times. Special thanks to the amazing bookstore staff, to OR Books, and all the gratitude in the world to editors Danielle Barnhart and Iris Mahan whose dedication and generosity have made and are going to continue to make wonderful things happen in poetry and beyond.

Read the full essay here.