Memorial Day 2019
Author Archives: Leslie Schultz
News Flash! THIRD WEDNESDAY Publishes “Poem in Which I Try, Very Hard, to Do My Own Bidding”
The newest issue of Third Wednesday is out. Once again, I am dazzled by so many poems in its pages and proud to have one of my own included. In this issue, too, I have been especially impressed with the photography.
In the Spring 2019 (Vol. XII, No. 2) issue, I find it harder than ever to cite favorites — but I will anyway. Take a look at Steven Deutsch’s poem “Sam and Saul” about twin musical prodigies; or the frozen lake shore landscape of Scott Lowery’s meditative “Vacancy;” or Jeanie Mortensen’s look at the discrepancies between literature and life in “Dick and Jane;” or Ted Kooser’s consideration of time in “Red Stilts;”or Kathryn Jacobs’s startling perspective in “Calling All Lemmings.”
Like the poetry, the photography in this issue kept surprising and delighting me. My favorites range from the lyrical juxtaposition of a flower and an open book called “Birth” (by Fabrice Poussin) and a study of dunes and sky called “California Dreaming (also by Fabrice Poussin) to the subtle view of exhortatory texts plastered on a gated driveway and house called “Signs” (by Gary Wadley), to — maybe my favorite of all — a head and shoulders portrait called simply “Robert” (by David Jibson.) This one is arresting because it is at once utterly contemporary and positively classical, as though a Roman philosopher visits and observes contemporary complications with earned detachment.
My own poem, titled “Poem in Which I Try, Very Hard, to Do My Own Bidding,” was inspired by a poem by William Butler Yeats called “The Lake Isle of Innisfree.” Perhaps, like me, you have memorized this gem? My own poem doesn’t echo so much the form of the poem as the way in which the heart can be split in its desire to live in two different places or modes at the same time, while recognizing the need to somehow integrate both rather than to choose.
Thank you for allowing me to share these thoughts with you! Leslie
Postcard: May 20, 2019
CONCERTINA: Update on an Evening of Poetry and Music
On May 9, 2019, Hot Spot Music was the site of a combined poetry reading and concert. Jake Minar Bastyr, of New Prague, opened the program with tunes played on a Hengel concertina he had made with his grandfather, Jerry Minar. Then Rob Hardy, Northfield’s Poet Laureate, introduced Jake and me, and I read a selection of poems from my new collection, Concertina. Poems were followed by uplifting melodies from Jake, refreshments, and conversation. There was even some singing along, and some toes tapping, along with a few heels kicked up, during the course of that lively evening!
It was a warm-hearted and unforgettable evening for me, that’s for certain. If you were not able to attend, here are some photos and video clips that will give you the flavor of the evening. LESLIE
(This video begins with Jake playing and has some poems as they were read. Below, following the photographs, are two more short clips of Jake playing on May 9.)
Reading of CONCERTINA by Leslie Schultz
and Music with Jake Bastyr
for May 9, 2019, Hot Spot Music, Northfield, MN
“Under the Murmur”
“Marches”
“Concertina”
“Lapis Philosophorum”
“Goldfish, Oboe, Paintbrush, Guitar”
“Minou”
“Simple Beauty”
“Silhouette”
“Sonnet Despite Rain”
“City Rain”
“The (Not-So) Easy-Bake Oven”
“Music So Loud We Can’t Hear”
“In the Produce Aisle”
“Antique Absinthe Glasses”
“Prayer in Stillness”
“Weather”
Thanks for this event go to Rob Hardy, Northfield’s Poet Laureate:
to the Northfield Public Library, for sponsoring the Poet Laureate program:
to the Southeastern Minnesota Arts Council (SEMAC) for funding support, through funds from the people of Minnesota and the Legacy Amendment:
and to Hot Spot Music and Martha Larson for hosting the event in this flexible and inviting space!
Postcard: Mother’s Day, 2019
Happy Mother’s Day to all the mothers I know! You are my splendid role models! Thank you! Leslie