TEARS WATER SEEDS

Ode #13 - Transcribed Poetic Dictation, Griefborn Ode

[So much has moved. I am just returning from a beautiful weekend down island marrying two of the dearest, most beloved people in my life. We crafted a beautiful ceremony and countless others contributed to many special evenings, celebrations, surprises. A true village wedding! Now, I am recovering from it — a sore throat, some congestion — all signs to a thorough and fulfilling exhaustion. Whenever I complete an intensive ceremony, I always come down with something like a cold. And it always seems to me a very good indicator of having given my all.
Elsewhere, I continue to offer pieces of my work to various platforms, journals, presses, magazines. The other day I discovered Rattle, which quickly impressed me. Their submission guidelines are one of the few that seem both genuine and appropriate to the era in which we live. Rattle’s editor wrote an excellent article on shifting from “Unpublished” to “Uncurated” in the poetry world. Most platforms do not consider much of my work as it has appeared here already; they only accept “unpublished” work. I do have other pieces which have not wished to be shared here — but I am not convinced they are interested in being shared at all! I am always wondering about my relationship with the greater ~Poetry World~ and how to engage with it. I remain curious and open, and continue to send inquiries. Places like Rattle encourage me to keep engaging with the institutions.
Earlier tonight, another very dear friend of mine invited me to a talk she was giving on grief, on being cracked open by grief. The co~incidence of this thirteenth ode and its content with the theme of grief is not missed. There are many tears to shed on this earth. Many more in the days to come. May they water seeds we never knew we planted~ ] Received 10/9/2025 | 1:57-2:05am

Companion Missive #13 - DIFFERENTIAL REVERENCE (8/3/2023)

Listen to the Recitation:

TEARS WATER SEEDS
We plant without realizing
Grief weaves a new world
Stretched thin to spread out
As the furthest reaches
Touch the nearest root
Sending living breath into soil
The electric pulse, vibrant
Cored apple coiling about
The heart tree, sky-high
Branching between worlds
A limping horse soars
With each new October bloom
From a heated earth,
Something crying comes forth
And lets what was sown
Some time ago, now
Sprout, and grow, and show

---

Károly Kernstok, In the Garden (1910) — I am featuring two amazing artists for the thirteenth ode: Károly Kernstok (from Hungary) and Anna Ancher (from Denmark). Much of their work was contemporary. Both are welcome companions to TEARS WATER SEEDS. There is a certain quality of color and luminosity they share. May you enjoy meeting~

Károly Kernstok, Park (1910)

Károly Kernstok, Last Supper (1921)

Anna Ancher, Harvesters (1905)

Anna Ancher, Fru Ane Brøndum i den blå stue (Portrait of the Artist’s Mother, 1913)

Anna Ancher, Solskin i den blå stue (Sunlight in the Blue Room, 1891)

With a few photos from my sunset walk earlier today — the goldening of autumn