I want to start by thanking everyone, whether you have read all of Max’s Musings or this is your first one. When presented with the opportunity to explore my love for poetry in a new way and share my thoughts and experiences, I lunged at the chance to do so. Poetry has always been an escape for me as it has taught me more about myself than I could ever fathom.

For my final Max’s Musings, I selected a poem from the powerhouse poet Maya Angelou. I couldn’t think of a more remarkable poet to ride out this long-awaited train.

Poet e. e. cummings has always reigned supreme as the king of breaking the standards of typical poetry. Offering the chance to explore one’s self and creativity by any means necessary, poetry is heightened and enlightened by cummings ability to go against what is expected as “normal” poetry.

A Millennium Reflection, which was foraged from a multitude of Seattle poets and photographers, brings people together for a common cause and common love. Published in 1999, it is a love letter from its residents to their city. The collection, a celestial tribute, deeply reflects on the beauty and resilience of Seattle alongside where it started, how far it has come, and where it still plans to go. Through poems and photographs, the city of Seattle is brought to life again.

I remember first being introduced to Frost and his poetry in middle school and revisiting in high school. In reading his famous “The Road Not Taken” and “Fire and Ice” at a young age, I learned so much about my life and where I foresaw it going.

With everything going on with politics these days and as it continues to unfold, I found Frost’s poem “House Fear” to be quite fitting for many, myself included. With fear in the title, the poem investigates the topic while offering hope in overcoming it.

For this week, I wanted look back at a poem and poet that fell into my lap in a time that I needed it the most. Cody R. Simpson, also known as singer/songwriter and actor Cody Simpson, released his poetry collection Prince Neptune in 2020. The collection touches on a conflicting battle between his struggle to uphold his godlike persona and reflecting on his own mortality of fame and fortune. “Simpson’s poetry combines themes of freedom and the ocean with the wisdom of an old soul.”

It wasn’t until after her death that the poetry collection Ariel was discovered and published in 1965. The Restored Edition was published later in 2004. With an honest and heartfelt foreword written by Plath’s daughter, Frieda Hughes, the collection “found comfort in restoring the balance” of Plath as both the poet and the human.

Plath’s poem “Lady Lazareth” first exposed me to her dynamic wordcraft. Of all the poems I came across in Ariel, there was something honest and authentic about Plath’s “Barren Woman” which solidified its spot for this week.  

Judith Skillman, Seattle author of Red Town, crafts a fictional town through a handful of poems that reflect on one’s past self and the experiences weaved within, around, and through. Reviewer Beth Bently claims that an “ordinary experience undergoes a surgical probe to reveal the underpinnings of relationships, ancestral connections, memories from childhood. No event is too slight to remain unexamined”. Red Town is a perfect example of coming to terms with one’s dark past to move to a future of pure gold.

Writer and dance director Carol Levin published her poetry collection Confident Music Would Fly Us to Paradise in 2014. As a patron for all distinct art forms, Levin dedicates her collection to the Seattle Opera. The collection offers a deep dive into many intricate facets of a colossal opera production. 

For discussion this week, I chose a poem from Reyna Biddy’s poetry collection, i love my love. Published back in 2015, I was exposed to her work for the first time in college during one of my poetry workshops. After reading it several years ago, I wanted to reread it with fresh eyes and an open heart.

Although the collection goes through ups and downs of self-doubt and self-confidence, Biddy reflects on her parents’ relationship as well as the greatest love of all: self-love. Biddy’s poem “for you” speaks to this ideal through a power anthem that invites the reader to act.

I Sing the Salmon Home: Poems from Washington State, edited by Rena Priest, is a poetry anthology full of diverse poems celebrating the tales of the epic fish. Priest states in the preface of the anthology that this passion project of hers stemmed from how “salmon are a keystone species, which means everything relies on them, and if we want to be okay, the salmon must thrive.”

Ani DiFranco, folk singer and founder of Righteous Babe Records, is returning to Seattle, February 1, 2025, to the Moore Theater. In the spirit of her visit, I wanted to select a poem from her poetry collection Verses, published in 2007, which tackles “the tough issues at hand” while “her personal-is-political viewpoint is more relevant than ever”. The collection looks at the importance of art and poetry and how they can be powerful tools in rhetoric when entering political spheres.

Shakespeare’s thought provoking, gut-wrenching, and philosophical sonnets hold their own weight and intrinsic merit. Tempted with many different pinpoints of poetry to discuss, I ended up selecting “Sonnet 100” due to its depiction of a poet’s relationship with their melodious muse and how it allows its readers to contemplate relationships both past and present, and how they still play into their lives today.

Why do poets use poetry as their medium of choice?

I wanted to continue sharing my thoughts on Edgar Allen Poe’s poem “Deep in Earth” from last week through another lens due to the impact it yields on me.

In addition to short stories, Poe found his calling in the realm of poetry. With classics like “The Raven” and “Annabel Lee” standing among his most famous poems, Poe seemingly and eloquently duels both forms.

For this week. I wanted to choose a poem that I have not been exposed to before. I’m hoping it’s new for you as well. I selected “Deep in the Earth”, written in 1847, for discussion due to its simplicity yet deep sense of open vulnerability.

Where do poets turn to for inspiration?

For this week, I wanted to choose a poet whose roots lie in the heart of the Pacific Northwest. David Guterson, a Seattle native with decades of hiking experience, published Turn Around Time in 2019. Guterson describes Turn Around Time as “a waking poem for the Pacific Northwest,” as the collection is full of poems with nature-enriched imagery paired with Washington artist Justin Gibben’s illustrations. 

How far can symbolism go in a poem? 

Throughout my college career, I don’t think a poem has ever split my colleagues as much as William Carlos Williams’s “The Red Wheelbarrow”. Initially published in 1923 in Spring and All, it has remained one of Williams’s most referenced poems. 

Why do poets write about love? 

Elizabeth Barrett Browning, an English poet and wife of fellow poet Robert Browning, has been a pioneer for authors and poets. Browning is responsible for respected works like Sonnets from the Portuguese, Casa Guidi Windows, Aurora Leigh, as well as a plethora of other works.

What is the final threshold between adolescence and adulthood?

After discussing three modern poets, I wanted to choose a traditional poet for discussion this week. William Blake, a Romantic, is most known for Songs of Innocence and Experience where he tackles the duality of childhood innocence and real-world experience. 

When I discovered Halsey came out with a collection of poetry, I immediately added it to my must-read list. I get enthralled when musical artists or actors release poetry collections and break from their typical art form. Poetry has become more accepted and common among celebrities to make another mark of change on the world.

Everyone experiences trauma. This is a human experience we all share. We all have different ways to deal with said trauma. So how do writers and artists process their trauma?

Poets and artists are not only bold enough to share their trauma through their art, but creative enough to spin their trauma into beauty through bravery. Trauma allows those to understand loved ones as well as the inner mechanisms of themselves through reparation.