In a poem about a deceased friend, he admits, "I swore when I got into this poem I would convert/ this sorrow into some kind of honey." Gay is known for his exuberant live readings, and though these poems don't translate perfectly to the page, they're inspiring nonetheless. behind which it shimmied and stomped something from the south. made with its shabby wings a kind of veil. He assumes the presence of an "ancestor who loved you/ before she knew you." Gay's incessant positivity takes a toll even on him, as evidenced by his occasional lament that he can't actually feel gratitude about or make beauty from the worst things in life. Friends, will you bear with me today, for I have awakened. The cover art provides a hint of the tenor of work to be. "I just want us to be friends now, forever./ Take this bowl of blackberries from the garden./ The sun has made them warm./ I picked them just for you." Gay welcomes readers into his garden%E2%80%94for playful strolls, for the work of pruning and harvesting%E2%80%94to bear witness to a mind working its hardest to appreciate the world. Ross Gay is a professor of English at Indiana University, Bloomington, as well as a poet and gardener. "I am grateful," he writes in the title poem. Fig trees are high on the list, along with friendship and the act of appreciation itself. Gay (Bringing the Shovel Down) drops a third collection that follows through on its title's promise: these simple, joyful poems read like a litany of what's good in the world. by Ross Gay Includes unlimited streaming via the Bandcamp app, plus download in mp3, FLAC and more.
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