Last autumn’s pumpkin shriveled in the April sun– nobody sees it. April 1 Fetch, Late March The turban squash that rested on the window ledge lies shattered on the flagstone like an eggshell. Winter made it hollow.…
Binocular That flinch hovering by the yew– what’s in his beak, a dot or a dash? A black dog, or a dot, is sleeping on the glass. The first robbers of spring: they’re flatter, more bloodthirsty than last year. All…
This essay originally appeared on Violinist.com A high school senior was trying out for a competitive acting program. When she finished reciting her monologues the program director smiled at her and said, “Sometimes we want to jump across the table and…
This essay originally appeared on Violinist.com, part 13 in the series “A Parents’ Guide to Conservatory Auditions” In a poem, one line may hide another line, As at a crossing, one train may hide another train. That is, if you…
This essay originally appeared on Violinist.com. …O sisters too, how may we do, For to preserve this day… When our four daughters were very small and just beginning to learn to play their miniature violins, what I looked forward to—and…
This essay originally appeared on Violinist.com. Every fall I teach an advanced fiction-writing class. Now that the semester is over I can report that my students were terrific this year, every one of them. Our discussions were dynamic and stimulating.…
Every spring I teach a 14-week undergraduate writing workshop at my university. It’s a fiction writers bootcamp. Each Monday we address a new technique: point-of-view, narrative distance, dialogue, tension, plotting, narrative college. The list goes on: thirteen topics, in all, with…
TREE HARMONICS for Calla on her 19th birthday I. A modulation in the wind foreshadows the new harmonics. A modulation in color: cherry petals resolve towards green, yellow-green, as if liquid light were puddling in those thin leaf-cups. We are…
“I believe it’s possible for someone with no formal musical education to be thrilled by even the most dense and supposedly inaccessible music. I have a fantasy in which I lock one of my best childhood friends – an imaginative…
Last spring I was surprised and honored to be chosen as the winner of the first annual Beltran Family Award for Innovative Teaching & Mentoring at at Penn. The award came with the opportunity to host a program at Kelly…
You must be logged in to post a comment.