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A Poem by Patricia Spears Jones

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Here is a poem by Patricia Spears Jones, whose work I have admired ever since reading her piece in the 1994 anthology Aloud: Voices from the Nuyorican Poets Café. This one is called "Comedy with Flutes," and it was first published in 2023. The Poetry Foundation link includes audio. Do take a listen! I'm adding "Comedy with Flutes" to my own "Resistance" collection. It begins,

Enough of this foolishness—caution gone
She opined
We need a comedy with flutes

Happy Black History Month, happy Valentine's Day, happy Poetry Friday. The roundup is at the blog TeacherDance. 

Photo by Susan Thomsen, 2019.  @ellestreetart mural, part of the @streetartmankind project. New Rochelle, New York.

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  1. Irene Latham Avatar
    Irene Latham

    A comedy with FLUTES! I immediately want to write after reading this line. Thank you!

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  2. Susan T. Avatar
    Susan T.

    Irene, I know, right? Awesome line.

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  3. Linda Baie Avatar
    Linda Baie

    I love that “lashing the brute with words” – we can’t stop! And, “the bombs making men rich” – she tells truth! Thanks, Susan!

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  4. Susan T. Avatar
    Susan T.

    Yes, she does tell the truth! You’re right, Linda. I liked that about this poem.

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  5. Tracey Kiff-Judson Avatar
    Tracey Kiff-Judson

    This poem I packed with powerful phrases: The hard crunch fun of fighting back!

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  6. Cathy Stenquist Avatar
    Cathy Stenquist

    Powerful words. the
    “Voice is our greatest magic.” Yes! I need to post this over my desk.

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  7. Susan T. Avatar
    Susan T.

    Tracey and Cathy, aren’t those great!

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  8. Mary Lee Avatar
    Mary Lee

    That’s a SUPERB resistance poem! So many great lines. I’m feeling the
    cauterize(d) souls
    weaken verve—we need
    Our nerve back.
    Huzzah for the power of the VOICE and for “lashing the brute with verbs.”

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  9. Susan T. Avatar
    Susan T.

    Yesss! So glad you like it, too, Mary Lee. Looking for poems to add to the collection is a fun little project.

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  10. Rose Cappelli Avatar
    Rose Cappelli

    Hooray for powerful poems! Thank you for sharing this one, Susan.

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  11. Susan T. Avatar
    Susan T.

    Absolutely! You’re so welcome, Rose.

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  12. Janice Scully Avatar
    Janice Scully

    Love: “ The hard crunch fun of fighting back” which I could feel in my bones. Great poem! Thanks Susan!

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  13. Linda Avatar
    Linda

    Wow! This poem gave me a lot to think about. Some very powerful lines!

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  14. Laura Purdie Salas Avatar
    Laura Purdie Salas

    Thank you for sharing this, Susan.
    These drums been beating for ages
    And we can’t decipher the signals—
    Once the drum became a machine
    The ghost in the skins was lost.
    The timeless power of poetry that feels like it was written this very moment.

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  15. Susan T. Avatar
    Susan T.

    Janice, Linda, and Laura, I’m glad to hear these lines spoke to you, too. Thank you for stopping by!

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  16. Denise Krebs Avatar
    Denise Krebs

    Susan, thank you for sharing Jones’ poem. It is a lovely part of a Resistance collection.
    “Lift our souls up and out
    Of this brutal banality.”

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  17. Robyn Hood Black Avatar
    Robyn Hood Black

    Timely and powerful, Susan – Thanks so much for sharing this week.

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  18. Susan T. Avatar
    Susan T.

    Denise and Robin, you’re so welcome. Jones’s words were ones I needed to hear!

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  19. Karen Edmisten Avatar
    Karen Edmisten

    Oh, I LOVE this, Susan! Thank you.

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  20. Susan T. Avatar
    Susan T.

    Karen, I’m glad to hear you like it, too! I need to get this whole collection & read it.

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