Dear Friends, I hope this finds you well and safe. These are challenging times, but we are not new to life's difficulties. Like the song by Maze goes "Joy and Pain are like Sunshine and Rain." No one want the pain and the rain, but how sweet is the joy and sunshine after?! My hope is that you hang in there and take good care of yourself until that sweetness finds you again. And it will. Create joy. Be gentle with yourself when it's too heavy. Ask for help when you need it. There is still much beauty in the world and we will lift each other up to it. It's National Poetry Month and the poems are busy doing what they do best - telling the truth and holding us through it. Wrap yourself in verse and all that keeps you warm and grounded. Onward with love, Amanda |
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Revel: Witness On March 8th, I had the pleasure of joining Revel to collaborate through poetry and music to create Witness. Music by Chopin, Paul Wiancko, Arvo Pärt, Coleridge-Taylor Perkinson, and Evan Chambers. Poetry by Amanda Johnston from Another Way to Say Enter. (Amanda Johnston, poet / Sunil Gadgil, alto saxophone / Zach Matteson, violin / Blake Turner, viola / Matt Kufchak, cello / Carla McElhaney, piano) | | |
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“What is safe in this burning for survival?” Amanda Johnston turns and turns the question, a high stakes puzzle to unravel, the answers all bound up in love. Tight, spare, minimalist and brimming with mystery, these poems weigh the consequences of every gesture: the opened lock, the raised right hand, the inward reach. “You grip the wheel, knuckles frozen, and press the gas/as clouds drift in and out of your mouth.” With strong resolve, illimitable talent, and a clear reverence for the forebears these poems reach for and find, Amanda Johnston crafts a collection of beauty and daring. Her risks are honest; her voice, vital—I mean absolutely necessary. -Lyrae Van Clief-Stefanon | | |
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Want to bring Amanda Johnston to your event? Let's connect! Available for online readings, adult and youth workshops, seminars, and speaking engagements. Press Kit | | |
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Cave Canem Foundation is near and dear to my heart. As a fellow and current board member, I know firsthand how Cave Canem supports Black poets with the necessary time, space, and encouragement needed to dream, create, and grow. Thank you for your continued support for this "home for black poetry." | | |
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