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Poetry and Arms
This morning, after watching and reading about the protests over 43 missing students in México, intense resonance from Roberto Bolaño: Hills shaded beyond your dreams. Castles dreamt by the vagabond. Dying at the end of any old day. Impossible to escape violence. Impossible to think of anything else. Feeble men praise poetry and arms. Castles and birds of another imagination. What has yet to take shape will protect me. And here’s the original: Colinas sombreadas más allá de tus sueños. Los castillos que sueña el vagabundo. Morir al final de un día cualquiera. Imposible escapar de la violencia.Read More
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Contra Auden
Mexican poet Javier Sicilia Luckily, no one seems to have told Javier Sicilia that “poetry makes nothing happen.” Something amazing is happening in Mexico. A few weeks ago, a 14-bus caravan, which had been traveling under the leadership of Javier Sicilia, a poet and the founder of the Movement for Peace With Justice and Dignity, arrived here after a 10-day trek around the country. Its every move was followed by the national media, and thousands showed up to greet its return.Read More
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Seeking the Muse in Mexico
My wife Melody and I are heading out for Mexico today—our 13th year at our favorite mini-resort, Petit Lafitte, situated about 6 miles north of Playa del Carmen, on the Caribbean side of the Yucatán peninsula. Our first week will be all tangled up with Melody’s annual Yoga Fiesta. And who knows? This year I may even pretzelize! But normally I spend my time reading and writing—the only extended stretch of creative time I seem to carve out every year.Read More
Joseph Hutchison, Colorado Poet Laureate 2014-2019, has published 20 collections of poems and edited or co-edited three poetry anthologies. He currently directs two master’s-level programs for University College at the University of Denver: Professional Creative Writing and Arts & Culture Management. Joe lives with his wife, Melody Madonna, in the mountains southwest of Denver, Colorado, the city where he was born. 
