#SurvivalStories2021 Adult Books Lifespan of a Reader Poetry Poetry Friday Reading Themes Stories Of The Dispossessed

[Poetry Friday] “I Was Sleeping Where The Black Oaks Move”

"These are the ghosts of the tree people moving among us, unable to take their rest."

by Myra Garces-Bacsal
Comments 6

Myra here.

Thank you to Irene Latham of Live Your Poem for hosting this week.

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When The Light Of The World Was Subdued, Our Songs Came Through

Edited by Joy Harjo with Leanne Howe, Jennifer Elise Foerster, and Contributing Editors (Amazon | Book Depository)

A few weeks back, I shared Louise Erdrich’s Advice To Myself from this collection. I found another one of her poems that I felt captured our current reading theme on “horror and deliverance in books” with its mention of ghosts and the horrors that disenfranchised people had to (and to a large extent, continue to) endure.

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About Myra Garces-Bacsal

Myra is a Teacher Educator and a registered clinical psychologist based in Al Ain, United Arab Emirates. Prior to moving to the Middle East, she lived for eleven years in Singapore serving as a teacher educator. She has edited five books on rediscovering children’s literature in Asia (with a focus on the Philippines, Malaysia, India, China, Japan) as part of the proceedings for the Asian Festival of Children’s Content where she served as the Chair of the Programme Committee for the Asian Children’s Writers and Illustrators Conference from 2011 until 2019. While she is an academic by day, she is a closet poet and a book hunter at heart. When she is not reading or writing about books or planning her next reads, she is hoping desperately to smash that shuttlecock to smithereens because Badminton Is Life (still looking for badminton courts here at UAE - suggestions are most welcome).

www.gatheringbooks.org

6 comments on “[Poetry Friday] “I Was Sleeping Where The Black Oaks Move””

  1. Irene Latham (@Irene_Latham)
    October 8, 2021

    Myra, thank you for sharing a poem from this book. Joy Harjo is a thoughtful editor, and I haven’t seen this collection yet. Thank you!

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply
  2. Elisabeth
    October 8, 2021

    Thanks for sharing this beautiful poem today.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply
  3. Denise Krebs
    October 9, 2021

    Myra, thank you for sharing this poem and collection. I like how you are always on the lookout for pieces that fit your reading theme.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply
  4. lindabaie
    October 9, 2021

    Thanks for sharing this poignant poem and the book, new to me, Myra. Wishing you a happy weekend!

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply
  5. haitiruth
    October 10, 2021

    Oh, those heartbreaking herons! Ruth, thereisnosuchthingasagodforsakentown.blogspot.com

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply
  6. maryleehahn
    October 10, 2021

    The loss is palpable in this poem. Oh, the description of the trees being torn loose by the flood, the herons losing their homes and then returning to mourn. Wow. I own this anthology. Maybe I’ll bring it out and read a poem a day from Oct. 11-Nov. 25.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

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