I like best the poem that sits down in the dirt with me and draws pictures with one dusty finger.

I want to maintain a habit of posting more often, so I’ve sat down a few times today to write about a dream I had last night.  Other things came up (more of what kinda ticked me off a little yesterday), so that didn’t happen.

So instead I’d like to share here my thoughts I’d had while visiting The Dad Poet, specifically his post A Thursday Love Poem, “The Four Moon Planet,” by Billy Collins.  The topic came up about poets such as Robert Frost, who are often characterized as “simple” and “accessible” as though those were bad things for a poet to be.  Personally, I think those are incredibly difficult things for a poet who wishes to convey truths and meanings, especially since so many people will choose not to look for such treasures in homespun verse.

I can’t think of better phrasing for what else I want to say, so I’ll just copy/paste my comment here:

I think the issue so many people have with Frost is that so many of us “do poetry”. We like to get deep into it, deconstruct obscure pieces of a line, and marvel at the twists and turns in complex imagery and turns of phrase. All one may do with Robert Frost is follow his simple thread, and if one isn’t careful, come to the end of it and find just one simple little knot that isn’t doing anything all that special.

And that right there is the whole point, to me, for many of the reasons you’ve put in your post and also your comment above. Robert Frost puts on this “just a country poet puttin’ stuff down plain” personae in his poetry as well, but I’ve known quite a few country poets so I know the gig. It’s the same gig as the wandering taoist monk: you put stuff out there plainly and matter-of-fact because that’s what the world is, that’s where you find those “hidden” and deep meanings that tug in your gut.

I guess what I’m saying is… Too many people use poetry as an exercise in scanning the stars for hidden constellations, while the real diamonds are down in the grubby ole earth. I like best the poem that sits down in the dirt with me and draws pictures with one dusty finger.

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When Atlas Shirked – Free eBook about Politics, Community, Love and Faith

When Atlas Shirked, by Nynia Chance

In honor of #MayDay, I have managed to get my new novel available in eBook form for free! In When Atlas Shirked, a dystopian Christian America uses love and fairness to forge peaceful community solutions to political & class warfare.

The novel is part Orwell, part #Occupy, part Christlike-Christian, and all Hope. It’s the antidote to the selfish and cruel version of atheism* of Atlas Shrugged, as it explores the powerful force of a community combining forces to defeat the poverty and isolation that had overtaken their alternate America. In comparison to Ayn Rand’s infamous novel, I like to say it’s All the Politics, Half the Page-Count, and a Hundred Times the Heart.

*Note: This novel is not anti-atheist, it’s anti-bigotry, anti-hate, and anti-malice. It explores the concepts of equality, Women’s Rights, Gay Rights and Social Justice through the experiences and evolving Biblical understanding of a young Christian woman. Others’ views have a voice in her story as well, showing that there is also another side to Faith or even simply reasoned Philosophy. Take a look. You might be surprised.

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