RIP Seamus Heaney

Sad news, as Nobel Prize winning poet Seamus Heaney has passed away at the age of 74. Heaney, once described by poet Robert Lowell as "the most important Irish poet since Yeats", died this morning after a brief illness. You can read his obituary here. The world lost a great one today, a "once-in-a-lifetime portent, the comet's pulsing rose" (to quote from his poem, "Exposure"). I'm leaving off here with a video of one of my favorite poems of his, "Death of a Naturalist". RIP, Seamus Heaney. You will be missed.

Back to School

Just arrived back on campus after a fabulous summer holiday. My travels took me to Glasgow, Edinburgh, Rome, Istanbul, and Cappadocia, then back to China. I think what made the journey most special were the relationships--I got to meet my fiance's family in Scotland, then got to spend time with my mom in Italy, and then moved on to a truly magical and romantic time in Turkey with just my fiance. And of course, along the way, new friends from different cultures were made. I feel so grateful for all of it! Time now to get settled back in, and start thinking about not only the new school semester, but new poems, as well, and to start planning the Nepal trip for winter holiday. Also, I'll post links to the photo galleries once I finish editing everything. It's good to be back! 

New Poem at The Verse

Ah, here's a nice welcome back from summer holiday--one of my poems, "Neverland", appears in the debut issue of The Verse (mine is the third poem, if you scroll down). I like what the editor, Dan Navarrete, wrote about my poem: "A call to take action, excellent depiction of the reality surrounding impoverished youth in China. Truly a piece that sinks into our hearts and refuses to let go, just like the imagery." Cool! I think I'm also to be their poet of the month for September, as well. Wishing The Verse the best, and I hope the new journal is a success! Check 'em out at the link below:

The Verse

UPDATE: The Verse no longer exists. That's a dead link above. I just went to check, and it's gone. They never came out with a second issue, so I was never featured as their poet of the month, either. What a shame.