Michael Bazzett
Michael Bazzett lives in Minneapolis, Minnesota. His latest book of poetry is The Echo Chamber, a modern retelling of the myth of Echo and Narcissus.
— From December 2023This Little Bit I Am Trying To Hold
Poems About Departures
Listen to the poets in this month’s special poetry section read their poems about leaving and letting go. To listen, click the play button below each title in the article.
I will leave you, / and I will / leave the sudden // darkness of afternoon thunderstorms / and I will leave / the rain and its patience in shaping mountains
— from “I Will Leave,” by Michael Bazzett
I am here to translate my father’s death / into fruit. Something that can be held. To bring / it up to your lips the way I spooned strawberry / yogurt up to his and said to him the word “Eat.” / There was no use, in the end. There was no hunger.
— from “I Did What I Could to Keep This,” by Peter Markus
Tonight, because all matter is dissolving, you & I / are being gradually undressed by the universe — // silk & wool molecules mingling with cells / rising from skin like souls
— from “Everything,” by Terry Lucas
December 2023At The Cafe
He was skirting the outdoor tables, smelling faintly of urine, / singing his song and muttering naughty comments that made us / smile, and I wondered how life would have been different / if he’d been my dad.
May 2015Nobody Fails At Meditation
Nobody fails at meditation / like I do. / They say, / Note the arrival of thoughts / and allow them to pass through / like clouds crossing a summer sky.
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