Tags
Read the full text of the poem here.
This poem first appeared in CALYX.
Christine Johnson-Duell is a poet who will write for a paycheck; specifically, she writes grants in support of Seattle Opera. Her chapbook, “Italian Lessons” was released in late 2014 by Finishing Line Press. Her poems have appeared in local Seattle and national journals, including “Poet Lore” and “Calyx” and she has written op-eds for “The Seattle Times” and “The Boston Globe” (for “The Globe” in the olden days, pre-Internet). Her essay, “On Being Not Jewish,” appeared in the journal “Drash.” Christine is an alumna of Hedgebrook and she holds an MFA in Creative Writing from the University of Washington. She is married and has a teenage daughter.
Favorite poets: “My favorite poet of all time is Seamus Heaney. And I love the work of his countrywoman Eavan Boland. Linda Pastan’s work fed mine in graduate school. I sometimes translate Eugenio Montale’s work and also read my UW classmates’ work: Erin Malone, Carol Light, and Kevin Craft. Nick Flynn is a genius. Elizabeth Austen’s work is luminous. Beyond these, I read widely and, especially, anything that John Marshall or Christine Deavel of Open Books in Seattle, put in my hands.”