An original poem. Bar the doorsEveryone under your desksBe stillQuiet nowQuiet Hide where? Where tanks rolland bombs falland fields burnand flies gather? Hide under desks? There’s no school leftno hospitalno homenowhere to hide where pipes run dryand shelves are bare,where bodies are maimedand children starve Don’t call it genocide,someone might notice Quiet childrenPleasePlease be quietContinue reading “Active Shooter”
Category Archives: Poetry
Yr Awen
An original poem, in Welsh. O wâl y berth, bob nos o dan y sêr, yn llawn nerth, draw ar hyd y llwybrau cudd, daw ysbryd hynod, teg ar orchwyl pêr a ddysgwyd ar y cof ers llawer dydd. Mor swil ei wedd, oes oesoedd dan ei draed, mae’r ysbryd yn ymroi ei hun i’wContinue reading “Yr Awen”
Sun Tzu
An original poem, in collaboration with an anonymous friend. he tells herabout this book he ordered“The Art of War,by some Chinese guy”like it’s somethingobscuresomethingshe’d never have heard of he paidtwelve dollars shipping sohow to tell himshe has at leastone copyalready
Going to Extremes
An original poem. the first thinga child learns in the kitchenis that the stove is hotso, so hottoo hotdon’t touchnever touch living in the desertyou get used to the heat,which is to say that in July you get used to opening the front door like opening the oven doorand changing your mindabout leaving the houseat all toContinue reading “Going to Extremes”
Plygain for Peace: Appreciating Welsh Christmas Music
I’m slightly belated relative to the beginning of the season of Advent, but Christmas hasn’t come yet, so it’s not too late for a few thoughts on the music of the season! As a second-language Welsh speaker, I was at first unfamiliar with Welsh music, but learning the language gave me entry to an entireContinue reading “Plygain for Peace: Appreciating Welsh Christmas Music”
O Dewch i Ben y Mynydd
Early in my journey of learning Welsh, I encountered a poem by the 19th century bard Mynyddog (given name Richard Davies). Though he enjoyed some notoriety during his own lifetime, he wasn’t an astounding poet and isn’t particularly remembered or celebrated as such today. And yet, he made some contributions to Welsh culture that have,Continue reading “O Dewch i Ben y Mynydd”
A Stopped Train
An original poem.
The Gods Return
An original poem.
Introducing the Welsh Tattoo Handbook
In my last post I talked a bit about my history with the Welsh language, why I speak it, and about getting the chance to write a book, but I didn’t go into great detail on the book itself. I’d like to give a shout out to the Geeky Gaeilgeoir for inspiring me to doContinue reading “Introducing the Welsh Tattoo Handbook”
The Carousel
Rainer Maria Rilke wrote a famous poem in German, for which I have yet to read what I would consider a satisfying English translation. The original is an extraordinary work of art. Its poetic diction is so ineffably German, the poem itself so sui generis, that any attempt at translation is bound to suffer. TheContinue reading “The Carousel”
Thoughts of Rob 