The Slowdown: Poetry & Reflection Daily

Today’s poem is There Is Always Space in My Life for More Life by Natasha Rao.

The Slowdown is your daily poetry ritual. In this episode, guest host Diannely Antigua writes… “I firmly believe I became a poet because of my time in Spain. Something in me cracked open, and a little light came through. I came through. I learned that if I stepped outside the small world I’d been given, the loveliest things could happen. Today’s poem reminds me of the power of stepping into experience and coming away changed. It asks us to make room for the moments we didn’t know we needed.”

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Today’s poem is The Good Life by Tracy K. Smith.

The Slowdown is your daily poetry ritual. In this episode, guest host Diannely Antigua writes… “When my grandmother took us kids to the pharmacy, she’d let us pick one snack to share. We always picked raspberry and creme cookies. We’d take our time with them, taking little bites of the buttery shortbread and jammy filling, savoring each one. Sometimes I’ll buy those cookies just to remember how they once tasted like luxury. It’s in these moments that I learned how love moves. It makes meaning out of what’s available, and insists on joy. It makes something out of nothing.”

This show is supported by gifts from listeners. Support The Slowdown with a donation and get access to the sponsor-free version of The Slowdown today. Slowdownshow.org/donate

Today’s poem is Blue by Laura Villareal.

The Slowdown is your daily poetry ritual. In this episode, guest host Diannely Antigua writes… “I believe color carries energy. It carries memory. I remember when I was young, coming home from the hospital after being sick. The teal paint on my bedroom walls suddenly felt overwhelming. It reminded me of sickness, of that version of myself I didn’t want to return to. A few days later, my dad and my uncle painted my walls a light beige. The color of cream. Or the pages of an old book. Or the color of my dog’s soft belly when she’d roll over, asking for a rub. I remember how calming it felt. How it erased what the room had previously carried and gave me the canvas to begin again.”

This show is supported by gifts from listeners. Support The Slowdown with a donation and get access to the sponsor-free version of The Slowdown today. Slowdownshow.org/donate

Today’s poem is Cheap Magic by Arielle Hebert.

The Slowdown is your daily poetry ritual. In this episode, Maggie writes… “When we wear a costume, or even an uncharacteristic outfit, it’s possible to let go of the expectations other people set for us. Sometimes disappearing into another identity makes you more of yourself, not less. Being inside a persona might make you freer, not more constrained.”

This show is supported by gifts from listeners. Support The Slowdown with a donation and get access to the sponsor-free version of The Slowdown today. Slowdownshow.org/donate

Today’s poem is At the End of a Good Week, the Van Broke Down by Mary Ardery.

The Slowdown is your daily poetry ritual. In this episode, Maggie writes… “Poetry, instead of asking questions like How did I get here? or What should I do? often deals more with the senses. Questions like What did it look like? How does it sound, taste, feel? Questions that ask us to witness. Much of the advice we receive assumes we have a level of control. But life doesn’t always work like that. We’re so often rolling with the punches, trying to hold our sorrows, or, to wring out a little pleasure and joy along the way.”

This show is supported by gifts from listeners. Support The Slowdown with a donation and get access to the sponsor-free version of The Slowdown today. Slowdownshow.org/donate