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“Today’s poem ... reminds me that part of how we know ourselves is through the people who know us best, and who have loved us through our changes,” @maggiesmithpoet.bsky.social shares in today's encore episode. Read "Crossing the Line" by E. Ethelbert Miller: bit.ly/4rHy6KE

An excerpt from “Crossing the Line” by E. Ethelbert Miller

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The Slowdown @slowdownshow.org · 29/09/2026

"Today's poem, which looks at the fragility of our planet, begins with two epigraphs," @maggiesmithpoet.bsky.social explains in today's encore episode. Read “Earth Shovel” by Dan Albergotti — from CANDY (@lsupress.bsky.social) — and our full episode transcript: bit.ly/46Q4ukO

Graphic featuring a portion of Dan Albergotti's poem

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The Slowdown @slowdownshow.org · 28/09/2026

"Today’s poem speaks to the ways we can care for one another, and of how profound and meaningful even the smallest gestures are,” shares host @maggiesmithpoet.bsky.social in today’s encore episode. Read “Lotioning My Mother’s Back” by Ama Codjoe: bit.ly/3ViKjJE 📖: @milkweededitions.bsky.social

graphic featuring a portion of Ama Codjoe's poem

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The Slowdown @slowdownshow.org · 25/09/2026

"There are so many beautiful moments in airports, if you pay attention," @maggiesmithpoet.bsky.social shares in today's encore episode. Read “at the baggage claim at JFK” by @lonaylor.bsky.social and our full episode transcript: bit.ly/3TrImdb

graphic featuring a portion of Lo Naylor's poem, which can be found in full at the link in the post

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The Slowdown @slowdownshow.org · 24/09/2026

"Today's poem is a kind of love poem — to a beloved tree, and to the sense of home it created," @maggiesmithpoet.bsky.social shares in today's encore episode. Read "Hackberry" by Cecily Parks, from THE SEEDS (@alicejamesbooks.bsky.social): bit.ly/4hLEqNK

text graphic featuring a portion of Cecily Parks' poem

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The Slowdown @slowdownshow.org · 23/09/2026

"One of the best arguments for what poetry can do, what it's for, how it can serve us, is that poetry says the unsayable," @maggiesmithpoet.bsky.social shares in today's encore episode. Read “Panegyric” by Leila Farjami, from DAUGHTER OF SALT: bit.ly/4yRqrM2 📖: @triohousepress.org

graphic featuring a portion of Leila Farjami's poem

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The Slowdown @slowdownshow.org · 22/09/2026

"Today's poem reminds me to feel tenderness toward the earlier versions of me," Maggie shares in today's encore episode. Read "How to Dress a Star" by Nicholas Goodly, from STAR POWER (Scribner Books), and our full episode transcript: bit.ly/4hEFByu

graphic featuring a portion of Nicholas Goodly's poem

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The Slowdown @slowdownshow.org · 18/09/2026

“Today’s poem is a celebration of creatures we tend to overlook or even disdain. It invites us to reconsider our perspective,” shares @maggiesmithpoet.bsky.social in today’s encore episode. Read “I Find Myself Defending Pigeons” by Keith S. Wilson: bit.ly/4AhN3XG 📖: @coppercanyonpress.bsky.social

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The Slowdown @slowdownshow.org · 17/09/2026

“I so admire how this poet unfolds the narrative then leaves me sighing deeply at the end," shares @maggiesmithpoet.bsky.social in today’s encore episode. Read "Six Hours Lost, Land Between the Lakes" by Kathleen Driskell: bit.ly/46pUxdD

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The Slowdown @slowdownshow.org · 16/09/2026

"Today's poem captures the experience of dining alone so beautifully," @maggiesmithpoet.bsky.social shares in today's encore episode. Read “The New City” by Hieu Minh Nguyen, from STAYING STILL (@tinhouse.bsky.social): bit.ly/4xU1rUt

graphic featuring a portion of Hieu Minh Nguyen's poem, which can be found in full at the link in the post

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The Slowdown @slowdownshow.org · 15/09/2026

"This poet does speak to the precarity of it all: writing, and loving, and living," @maggiesmithpoet.bsky.social shares in today's encore episode. Read "Ledge (ars poetica) (love poem) (true story)" by @amorak.bsky.social: bit.ly/4h6VFYt

text graphic featuring copy from Amorak Huey's poem

selfie photograph of poet Amorak Huey, taken near the water.

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The Slowdown @slowdownshow.org · 14/09/2026

"Once upon a time, I was a new mother with a baby girl in my arms, and I was her whole world," @maggiesmithpoet.bsky.social shares in today's encore episode. Read "A toast to something beautiful flapping in the wind" by J. Hope Stein and our full episode transcript: bit.ly/4haVYlb

graphic featuring a portion of J. Hope Stein's poem

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The Slowdown @slowdownshow.org · 11/09/2026

"To make things that don't exist yet ... and to send them out into the world is wildly, impractically, gorgeously hopeful," @maggiesmithpoet.bsky.social shares in today's encore episode. Read "The plum you're going to eat next summer” by @gaylebrandeis.bsky.social: bit.ly/4yCIF45

graphic featuring a portion of Gayle Brandeis' poem

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The Slowdown @slowdownshow.org · 10/09/2026

“Today’s poem considers how we regard ourselves—our physical selves. It’s a poem I love, a poem that I see a lot of beauty in,” host @maggiesmithpoet.bsky.social shares in today’s encore episode. Read “Parts of a Body House” by Erika Meitner (@rika99.bsky.social): bit.ly/4yoBuMy

text graphic featuring a portion of Erika Meitner's poem

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The Slowdown @slowdownshow.org · 09/09/2026

"When I was young, the myth of Icarus was one that captured my imagination," @maggiesmithpoet.bsky.social shares in today's encore episode. "Today's poem references this myth — this cautionary tale — in beautiful, unexpected ways." Read "If Night You Were a City" by Adam Wiedewitsch: bit.ly/4ykGou6

text graphic featuring a portion of Adam Wiedewitsch's poem

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The Slowdown @slowdownshow.org · 08/09/2026

“Today’s poem is by one of my favorite Kentucky writers, a fellow dog person,” host @maggiesmithpoet.bsky.social shares in today’s encore episode. Read “For You Who Have Loved Old Dogs" by @silashouse.bsky.social and our full episode transcript: bit.ly/4gPxPjK

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The Slowdown @slowdownshow.org · 07/09/2026

“Today’s poem is from a collection of prose poems that chronicles a woman’s journey through obsessive-compulsive disorder, from childhood into adulthood," @maggiesmithpoet.bsky.social shares in today's encore episode. Read “Protection Spell Jar" by Cynthia Marie Hoffman: bit.ly/3V1R4iN

graphic featuring a portion of Cynthia Marie Hoffman's poem

photograph of poet Cynthia Marie Hoffman

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The Slowdown @slowdownshow.org · 04/09/2026

"I don’t mean this to sound grim, but I think poetry is like a living wake," guest post Myka Kielbon shares in episode 1586. "Poets sing the songs of everything that matters to them in this life." Read "WHITMAN:" by Larry Levis, from WINTER STARS: bit.ly/4qXpP4W 📖: @upittpress.bsky.social

graphic featuring a portion of Larry Levis' poem

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The Slowdown @slowdownshow.org · 03/09/2026

"[Today's poem] will be read to you in just one voice, my voice, but the title calls it a dialogue," guest host Myka Kielbon shares in episode 1585. "I want you to consider, while you’re listening, whom the dialogue might be between." Read “Dialogue on Violence” by Jayne Cortez: bit.ly/4cTXdni

graphic featuring a portion of Jayne Cortez's poem

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The Slowdown @slowdownshow.org · 02/09/2026

"I love to be alone, but it seems I write the most when I’m feeling lonely in the worst way," guest host Myka Kielbon shares in episode 1584. "Today’s poem considers, joyously, the anonymous effect that this dynamic could have." Read "Missed Time" by Ha Jin: bit.ly/3T5dEqd

graphic featuring a portion of Ha Jin's poem

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The Slowdown @slowdownshow.org · 01/09/2026

"Today’s poem is from a recent anthology of new poetry out of Palestine," guest host Myka Kielbon shares in episode 1583. Read "Are You Not Tired Yet?" by Mohammad al-Khatib, from YOU MUST LIVE: NEW POETRY FROM PALESTINE: bit.ly/4zTMW4A 📖: @coppercanyonpress.bsky.social

text graphic featuring a portion of Mohammad al-Khatib's poem

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The Slowdown @slowdownshow.org · 31/08/2026

“Today's poem takes me to [a] specificity of a Washington State public school education: learning the intricacies of salmon, sturgeon, dams, ecology, and electricity,” guest host Myka Kielbon shares in episode 1582. Read “Visitor's Center” by T Bambrick, from VANTAGE: bit.ly/4gu6yoc

graphic featuring a portion of T Bambrick's poem

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The Slowdown @slowdownshow.org · 28/08/2026

"Today’s poem ... bends the shape of thinking by forming a lyric collage," guest host Myka Kielbon shares in episode 1581. Read “Stop Thinking & End Your Problems” by Elisa Gabbert, from NORMAL DISTANCE, and our full episode transcript: bit.ly/4ybjEN6

graphic featuring a portion of Elisa Gabbert's poem

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The Slowdown @slowdownshow.org · 27/08/2026

“Today’s poem shows us how our desires are about both projection and possession," guest host Myka Kielbon shares in episode 1580. Read "Story of My Life” by Jameson Fitzpatrick, from PRICKS IN THE TAPESTRY, and our full episode transcript: bit.ly/4cJgGHc

graphic featuring a portion of Jameson Fitzpatrick's poem

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The Slowdown @slowdownshow.org · 26/08/2026

“Loss of possibility is one of the greatest heartbreaks we can face," guest host Myka Kielbon shares in episode 1579. "But today’s poem knows the bittersweet secret: that our memories of the possible are ours to keep.” Read "Rain" by Jennifer Grotz, from STILL FALLING: bit.ly/4gxbCqB

graphic featuring a portion of Jennifer Grotz's poem

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The Slowdown @slowdownshow.org · 25/08/2026

"I thought [today's poem] spoke to me because it connects my father’s love of cars to my own love of poetry," guest host Myka Kielbon shares in episode 1578. "But ... what it does on a craft level is what knocks me off my feet every time." Read "Lover of Cars" by Olivia Sokolowski: bit.ly/3UTU8gI

graphic featuring a portion of Olivia Sokolowski's poem

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The Slowdown @slowdownshow.org · 24/08/2026

"[Today's poem] is a welcome message to the possibility of simple pleasures, despite whatever pain is held in the past," guest host Myka Kielbon shares in episode 1577. Read "Portrait of the Speaker Riding a Greyhound Bus” by Eduardo Martinez-Leyva: bit.ly/3UdIOMs 📖: @uwiscpress.bsky.social

text graphic featuring a portion of Eduardo's poem

photograph of poet Eduardo Martinez-Leyva

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The Slowdown @slowdownshow.org · 20/08/2026

For two weeks starting Monday, 8/24, we'll be joined by a special guest host: lead producer Myka Kielbon. "Selecting poems to share with you feels like creating a cast list for a play ... I so hope you enjoy the journey they will take you on together." Episodes with Maggie return late September!

photograph of Myka Kielbon, lead producer for The Slowdown

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The Slowdown @slowdownshow.org · 20/08/2026

"Today's poem addresses a child — a child full of questions about the world," @maggiesmithpoet.bsky.social shares in today's encore episode. Read "The Long Now" by Robin Beth Schaer and our full episode transcript: bit.ly/4hKEm1g

graphic featuring a portion of Robin Beth Schaer's poem

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The Slowdown @slowdownshow.org · 19/08/2026

“Today's poem looks, tenderly, at two siblings attempting to close the distance between them," @maggiesmithpoet.bsky.social shares in today's encore episode. Read "Rancho Bar" by Margot Kahn and our full episode transcript: bit.ly/4xJRQ20

graphic featuring a portion of Margot Kahn's poem

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The Slowdown @slowdownshow.org · 18/08/2026

“I know poetry can’t stop bombs from falling, and it can’t feed the starving, and it can’t evacuate people to safety,” shares @maggiesmithpoet.bsky.social in today’s encore episode. "But poetry can change our inner world." Read “From the Sky” by Sara Abou Rashed: bit.ly/4zpUw6w

graphic featuring a portion of Sara Abou Rashed's poem

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The Slowdown @slowdownshow.org · 17/08/2026

"All of this is either useless information — time of day, day of the week, month of the year — or it's part of our own myth-making," @maggiesmithpoet.bsky.social shares in today's encore episode. Read “Somewhere Else” by Adam J. Gellings, originally pub'd by @poetsorg.bsky.social: bit.ly/4xbtC0Y

graphic featuring a portion of Adam J. Gellings' poem

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The Slowdown @slowdownshow.org · 14/08/2026

"I was drawn to today's poem from the get-go because of its title," @maggiesmithpoet.bsky.social shares in today's encore episode. "I went in anticipating maximalism ... and the poem delivered." Read "Poem about everything except—" by Amy Lemmon: bit.ly/4hA6Wm2

graphic featuring a portion of Amy Lemmon's poem

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The Slowdown @slowdownshow.org · 13/08/2026

"There are wonderful, necessary, life-changing adventures to be had by traveling, and still we long to hold and hug and kiss the people who aren't there with us," @maggiesmithpoet.bsky.social shares in today's encore episode. Read "XII. Southern Constellations" by Brandon Kilbourne: bit.ly/4fYHy8o

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The Slowdown @slowdownshow.org · 12/08/2026

"Today’s poem is a long, beautiful strand," host @maggiesmithpoet.bsky.social shares in episode 1410 of The Slowdown. "Listen and enjoy." Read "Go" by Kathleen Ossip and our full episode transcript: bit.ly/4zcM7n1 📖: @sarabandebooks.bsky.social

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The Slowdown @slowdownshow.org · 11/08/2026

“It can be so hard to accept help from others, especially if you pride yourself on being self-sufficient," host @maggiesmithpoet.bsky.social shares in today's encore episode. Read “Different Kinds of Sadness" by @jennymolberg.bsky.social and our full episode transcript: bit.ly/3UqB1e0

graphic featuring a portion of Jenny Molberg's poem

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The Slowdown @slowdownshow.org · 10/08/2026

"I can't imagine feeling less, or caring less. That's not the heart I have," @maggiesmithpoet.bsky.social shares in today's encore episode. Read "Pardon My Heart" by Marcus Jackson — from PARDON: POEMS — and our full episode transcript: bit.ly/4wMKzOV 📖: @nupress.bsky.social

text graphic featuring a portion of Marcus Jackson's poem

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The Slowdown @slowdownshow.org · 06/08/2026

"As we often see in poems like today’s, language is elastic, adaptable, able to accommodate possibility and complexity," @maggiesmithpoet.bsky.social shares in episode 1575. Read "ode to the afternoon" by Zeina Hashem Beck — from O — and our full episode transcript: bit.ly/4xgv69I

graphic featuring a portion of Zeina Hashem Beck's poem

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The Slowdown @slowdownshow.org · 05/08/2026

"The Disney versions of fairy tales don’t reflect the gray areas of real life, and they don’t even reflect the traditional versions of these stories," @maggiesmithpoet.bsky.social shares in episode 1574. Read "Black Fairy Tale" by Elizabeth Spires, from ANNONCIADE: bit.ly/4bYM8ko

graphic featuring a portion of Elizabeth Spires' poem

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The Slowdown @slowdownshow.org · 04/08/2026

"The histories that trees hold ... are at the heart of today’s poem," @maggiesmithpoet.bsky.social shares in episode 1573. Read “Dialogue with the Oldest Tree in the U.S., whose Location is a Closely-Guarded Forest Service Secret” by @ninasudhakar.bsky.social: bit.ly/4gbFNo9

graphic featuring a portion of Nina Sudhakar's poem

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The Slowdown @slowdownshow.org · 03/08/2026

"Sometimes, as we see in today’s poem, it’s difficult not to wonder if life will go on as expected, and if traditions will continue, or if we’re experiencing the end of an era," @maggiesmithpoet.bsky.social shares in episode 1572. Read "Summer Strawberries" by Cat Wei: bit.ly/4xa81FE 🍓

graphic featuring a portion of Cat Wei's poem

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The Slowdown @slowdownshow.org · 31/07/2026

“Sometimes, as we see in today’s poem, even when things are difficult, even just the smallest bit of sweetness helps," @maggiesmithpoet.bsky.social shares in episode 1571 of The Slowdown. Read "Guava Jelly" by Quinn Franzen and our full episode transcript: bit.ly/3TLKCvG

graphic featuring a portion of Quinn Franzen's poem

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The Slowdown @slowdownshow.org · 30/07/2026

"Today’s poem invites us to celebrate what is, rather than what could be — so it invites us to accept ourselves exactly as we are," @maggiesmithpoet.bsky.social shares in episode 1570. Read "Wabi-Sabi" by Catherine Esposito Prescott and our full episode transcript: bit.ly/3RqihKO

graphic featuring a portion of Catherine Prescott's poem

photograph of poet Catherine Esposito Prescott

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The Slowdown @slowdownshow.org · 29/07/2026

"You have one of our listeners to thank for today’s poem — well, one of our listeners for suggesting it, and the beloved Mary Oliver for writing it," @maggiesmithpoet.bsky.social shares in episode 1569. Read “Someday” by Mary Oliver, from RED BIRD, and our full episode transcript: bit.ly/3TKQPYK

graphic featuring a portion of Mary Oliver's poem

photograph of poet Mary Oliver -- she's reading a book alongside her fluffy dog

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The Slowdown @slowdownshow.org · 28/07/2026

"One of the best arguments for what poetry can do, what it’s for, how it can serve us, is that poetry says the unsayable," @maggiesmithpoet.bsky.social shares in episode 1568. Read “Panegyric” by Leila Farjami, from DAUGHTER OF SALT: bit.ly/4vSqw04 📖: @triohousepress.org

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The Slowdown @slowdownshow.org · 27/07/2026

"Maybe someday gardening will call to me and be just what I need," @maggiesmithpoet.bsky.social shares in episode 1567 of The Slowdown. "In today’s poem, gardening is exactly what the speaker needs." Read "Assistance" by @abbiekiefer.bsky.social: bit.ly/4vQcyf8

graphic featuring a portion of Abbie Kiefer's poem

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The Slowdown @slowdownshow.org · 24/07/2026

"The speaker of today’s poem confesses something — and in doing so, with self-compassion and self-forgiveness, sets it down," @maggiesmithpoet.bsky.social shares in episode 1566. Read "What I Wanted to Keep Private" by Melissa Crowe, from ABIDER: bit.ly/4yExjgE 📖: @upittpress.bsky.social

graphic featuring a portion of Melissa Crowe's poem

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The Slowdown @slowdownshow.org · 23/07/2026

"When the words themselves are lost, so much can be lost with it: oral histories, traditions, and unique perspectives," @maggiesmithpoet.bsky.social shares in episode 1565. Read “bilingual” by @mrmack88.bsky.social from SIPÈSTISYON: bit.ly/44Om9Z1 📖: @@yesyesbooks.bsky.social

graphic featuring a portion of Mckendy Fils-Aime's poem

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The Slowdown @slowdownshow.org · 22/07/2026

"Grief is with us all the time because love is with us all the time," @maggiesmithpoet.bsky.social shares in episode 1564. "Grief touches every part of our lives, because love touches every part of our lives." Read "Young Widow at the Kitchen Window" by @dsmpoet.bsky.social: bit.ly/45dnp8a

graphic featuring a portion of Donna Spruijt-Metz's poem

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The Slowdown @slowdownshow.org · 21/07/2026

"Today’s poem is a villanelle, and its use of the word 'circuit' makes the repetition especially apropos," @maggiesmithpoet.bsky.social shares in episode 1563. Read “Return Path” by @lesleymwheeler.bsky.social, from MYCOCOSMIC: bit.ly/4ffeAke 📖: @tupelopress.bsky.social

graphic featuring a portion of Lesley Wheeler's poem

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