Hello Sherman, I'm posting a second time because I especially like this Conflagration collection. It speaks to my own experience. I was first diagnosed with manic-depression at age 27, that was 40 years ago. I also write about the multi-faceted layers and complexities of my condition. So I wanted to tell you that your opening line stayed with me. It's come to mind several times over the past couple of weeks. "The pills don't heal me. They just lock the attic and basement doors." The entire collection is great, filled with many truths. Thank you!
Wow. I was taking a break from writing a piece about dark night of the soul, depression, and truth-telling when I opened this. Will go back to my piece renewed in determination.
Reptile(!) That one's going to live in my head for a bit-- all the juxtapositions, the way the poem rhythmically slithers along until its final hiss. yes.
Sherman--Hiding in the back room reading this--a room I seldom leave. The Controllers are gone and I'm by myself again in the void I prefer. MDD with psychosis sounds scary but I'm fairly mellow, except for my thoughts! Banging my head sounds reasonable but I'd draw a crowd, so I'm reading you silently this AM waiting for tomorrows brain MRI. Yakoke for posting these words... your work is always reliably timely. james
Kia ora Sherman. Wow, there's some searingly honest poetry here. A lot of crucial self knowledge too. It seems like you've looked deep within, unsparingly.
It takes courage to do that mahi and then put it into the world.
My favourites are Pharmacy - it encapsulates mental illness with accuracy. The chemical bargain you make to be able to contain it all.
Also Reptile.
I must say I have a liking for Eve's serpent. Proffering knowledge. Aren't we all hungry ? She got a bad rap!
Of all the euphemisms for the spirit, surely the Holy Ghost is the most lyrical. There is a highway joint on a backroad to Pittsburgh called Holy Smokes BBQ, which would work just as well as the name of a seminary.
And as someone raised Pentecostal, I know all too well the danger of anyone claiming that the Spirit told them such and such. It's one of my main questions as an experimental Quaker, whether "the light" is just another version of that, an abstraction that some believe in and that others exploit or hide behind.
I think people can have extraordinary physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual gifts but they're still staggering through life with all the flaws, weaknesses, and contradictions all of us carry around.
I don’t know what it’s like to have mania. I wish I had a little, just like I wish I had a little OCD, just so I could get things done, and maybe eke out a little creativity. Instead I’m bland. Boring. Sleepy. But ever appreciative of the talents of others.
Hello Sherman, I'm posting a second time because I especially like this Conflagration collection. It speaks to my own experience. I was first diagnosed with manic-depression at age 27, that was 40 years ago. I also write about the multi-faceted layers and complexities of my condition. So I wanted to tell you that your opening line stayed with me. It's come to mind several times over the past couple of weeks. "The pills don't heal me. They just lock the attic and basement doors." The entire collection is great, filled with many truths. Thank you!
This searingly honest writing helped me understand a loved one SO much better. Thank you.
Thank you, Jeanne. I wish you and your loved one some peace.
Beautiful. Can relate!
Thank you, Nick.
Feels like ‘enjoyed them’ would be the wrong phrase to use here. Appreciated them and I hear you on many of these themes. Thanks
thank you, Julie.
Wow. I was taking a break from writing a piece about dark night of the soul, depression, and truth-telling when I opened this. Will go back to my piece renewed in determination.
Thank you, Willa.
Real, raw and beautiful poetry. Thank you.
Thank you.
Reptile(!) That one's going to live in my head for a bit-- all the juxtapositions, the way the poem rhythmically slithers along until its final hiss. yes.
Thank you, for noticing the structure.
wow - that bipolar trade indeed - you nailed it
Thank you, Martha.
Sherman--Hiding in the back room reading this--a room I seldom leave. The Controllers are gone and I'm by myself again in the void I prefer. MDD with psychosis sounds scary but I'm fairly mellow, except for my thoughts! Banging my head sounds reasonable but I'd draw a crowd, so I'm reading you silently this AM waiting for tomorrows brain MRI. Yakoke for posting these words... your work is always reliably timely. james
I like these
Thank you, Julia.
Every one of them, so tight, so powerful.
Thank you, Shelah.
The overwhelming desire to sleep is the first sign that my depression is coming back.
Kia ora Sherman. Wow, there's some searingly honest poetry here. A lot of crucial self knowledge too. It seems like you've looked deep within, unsparingly.
It takes courage to do that mahi and then put it into the world.
My favourites are Pharmacy - it encapsulates mental illness with accuracy. The chemical bargain you make to be able to contain it all.
Also Reptile.
I must say I have a liking for Eve's serpent. Proffering knowledge. Aren't we all hungry ? She got a bad rap!
Thank you! Eve did get a bum deal!
Of all the euphemisms for the spirit, surely the Holy Ghost is the most lyrical. There is a highway joint on a backroad to Pittsburgh called Holy Smokes BBQ, which would work just as well as the name of a seminary.
And as someone raised Pentecostal, I know all too well the danger of anyone claiming that the Spirit told them such and such. It's one of my main questions as an experimental Quaker, whether "the light" is just another version of that, an abstraction that some believe in and that others exploit or hide behind.
I think people can have extraordinary physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual gifts but they're still staggering through life with all the flaws, weaknesses, and contradictions all of us carry around.
Excellent! Spot on.
Thank you, Feijão.
I don’t know what it’s like to have mania. I wish I had a little, just like I wish I had a little OCD, just so I could get things done, and maybe eke out a little creativity. Instead I’m bland. Boring. Sleepy. But ever appreciative of the talents of others.
Thank you, Susan a little does go a long way. Ha!