Reading from “The Testing-Tree” by Stanley Kunitz & Two Poems by Me

Poetry Lunch S6E7

Reading an excerpt from “The Testing-Tree” by Stanley Kunitz, The Collected Poems, W.W. Norton, plus “Built Broken” and “Open” by myself, Myrna Keliher.

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There’s a thread of brokenness and bearing witness through these three pieces that’s resonating strongly with me this week. I don’t know what else to do but stay with. And hold everything I can. And let myself be held.

With lots of love for all that’s yet to break.

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Related prints

“Built Broken” was written and printed in spring 2016 during an artist residency at the Wells College Book Arts Center.

“Open” was written and printed in fall of 2015 at Starshaped Press in Chicago.

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Link to purchase

Get the book: Collected Poems by Stanley Kunitz

Get the prints: Built Broken and Open

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About the Authors

Stanley Kunitz was the tenth Poet Laureate of the United States, appointed at the age of 95 after a long literary career. He received a Pulitzer Prize for his third poetry collection, Selected Poems, 1928-1958. You can read more about him on his Poetry Foundation page here.

Myrna Keliher is the artist and owner of Expedition Press. She studied literature and printing at the Evergreen State College and later apprenticed with Stern & Faye, Printers. Myrna is passionate about language, spacing, letters, teaching, and getting people to read poetry.

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Credits

Thanks to Jen Farrell of Starshaped Press and Rich Kegler and Wells Book Arts for hosting me those years ago, sharing their spaces so I could make the two prints shared here.