It goes without saying that May was a marathon I certainly wasn’t prepared to run (especially with my chronic pain flaring up).
The fact is, I’m finally writing this on the final day of the month because I made a commitment in March to do this twice a month—and I can’t let my inner saboteur and achy body stop me from keeping my promise! Navigating this rough terrain has required quite a bit of maintenance and rest, so this edition got pushed to the last possible day. But as we discussed in book club on Friday, we are allowed to embrace the dichotomies. I am a person who values deep discipline and I am a person who sometimes missed a deadline (or two). Both are true.
This edition is about exactly that. The parts of ourselves that don’t fit neatly into a single box, and what happens when we stop trying to make them, and instead recognize them all as essential pieces needed to put together the big picture of you.
📝 Signature Sip
This month, I wrote a very personal essay detailing how I hold onto who I am even when I can’t physically do what I do. It’s also a behind-the-scenes look at the realities of working in a strip club & what I’ve gained from it. You can read the full essay here:
〰️ Let It Flow
If you’re feeling that same pull toward reclamation, this prompt is for your own practice:
Write about a dichotomy you embrace. Where do the “sacred” and “rebellious” meet in your body, in your life, in your perspective on the world?
Once you’ve answered that for yourself, you might be ready to share it with someone ⬇
📤 Pour Your Heart Out
The Poetry Pour is a platform for this community, which can mean getting your work in front of more readers (if that’s what you desire). Here are three opportunities to check out:
Options Magazine: Seeking poems, short stories, or articles (2500 words max) from local queer writers. Submit via email to:
[email protected].Rhode Island Bards Poetry Anthology: Seeking up to 3 poems (100 lines or less). Include a 3rd person bio. Submit to:
[email protected].The Poetry Pour: I am actively seeking one poem and one essay to publish for June and July.
How: Email
[email protected](PDF or Google Docs please).What you get: A byline, a guest author page, and direct distribution to 100+ fellow poetry pals.
If you need a jolt of inspiration before hitting send, look no further…
🔖 Poured from the Pages
This month, we dove into POLE DANCING TO GOSPEL HYMNS by Andrea Gibson. One poem from their 2008 debut collection that has been on my mind ever since I flipped to it is titled “Every Month”:
What makes this poem so memorable for me is that last stanza, appearing in print as so:
‘cause god knows
the holy have done more damage to this world
than the devil ever could
This poem made for some great conversation on Friday night at Symposium Books during meeting #1 of 2 for the IRL poetry book club. It was a privilege to talk Gibson in a new space and meet four new poetry pals—the most people we’ve had show up for a single meeting yet! Reminder if you missed Friday but still want to chat about the book: our final meeting for May is TODAY, Sunday 31st from 4-5pm at Riffraff Bookstore & Bar (same time, same place, every last Sunday of the month). No RSVP needed—just show up with your copy of the book (or buy one on your way in), grab a drink, & get ready to talk poetry with me. And don’t forget to join us on the Fable app to find out first what we’re reading in June!
📜 Pals Pour it Forward
Before I reveal this month’s featured poem, I want to call back to last month’s featured poem, “Naturescape” by Olivia Poulin. I had the honor of hearing her perform it at Afroverse’s Hide-n-Speak this past week, and the impact was even stronger hearing it aloud!
This month, I am thrilled to introduce Shelley Stoehr:
I chose to publish her work because it interrogates the systems we move through with a sharp, literal eye. This poem has to be one of my very favorites I’ve ever read!
I also want to extend a huge thank you to Shelley for her grace regarding the delayed publication of her piece 🤎. (My physical health is a work in progress so I appreciate the patience as I get the timing right in consideration of my limitations.)
If you’ve read this far, you should probably subscribe so you can join over 100 other human beings on a poetry journey—with me as the friendly conductor!
Snaps, claps, & heel clacks,
Salena JD ~ your resident pourtender
