Neruda’s Memoirs, Sneak Preview

We’ve got a cover for Maureen E. Doallas’s upcoming poetry collection, Neruda’s Memoirs.

And here’s an excerpt of the title poem (Neruda’s Memoirs 🙂 ) …






2

Neruda said the closest thing to poetry
is a loaf of bread
or a ceramic dish
or a piece of wood lovingly carved.

So he poured his words
into the glass of another language
only some of the world speaks.

He gave light to the mines of Coquimbo.
Now they glitter like dew on a silver fish.

He left the smell of fresh ink and crisp paper
at the broker’s, who traded his wife’s voice
for a rainbow of lightning.

He melted the snow on broad-sided mountains
to water the dust on Santiago’s tongue.

He found the blue of Chile’s sky
in the bellies of volcanoes, its silence
in a guitar in Spain.

Neruda’s the rush of roots
after a sudden breath

the warm tear on a face in love

the sound of adolescence missing a beat.



Looking forward to the rest. Sometime in early February.

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L.L. Barkat

L.L. Barkat is the Managing Editor of Tweetspeak Poetry and the author of six books for grown-ups and four for children, including the popular Rumors of Water: Thoughts on Creativity & Writing. She has also served as a writer for The Huffington Post blog and is a freelance writer for Edutopia. Her poetry has appeared on NPR and at VQR and The Best American Poetry. Connect with her on LinkedIn.

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