[Critique Group 1] Leonard's comments on Sally's sub

[tuchyner5 at aol.com]

Sally subfor April




 


 



INTRODUCTION



 



 



Anyone whoreads this book needs to know two things:  I am a private person who didnot write any of the poems and prose included for wide publication, and this isa book I never wanted to write.  Still, here we are, you and I, sharing myemotions and memories.



Initially,I wrote most of the poems as a 



(asa)change to (as a)




 



 


member of acritique group that met monthly and as a member of the larger writers’ onlinegroup comprised of people with disabilities, Behind Our Eyes.  




 


Thanksfor  the recognition.




 


Beyond themembers of Behind Our Eyes, I gave a few poems to friends.  That was asfar as I was willing to go.  While my colleagues were busy with publishingwork in journals and as books, I was content to hand a poem, literally ormetaphorically, to another reader in the hope she or he might find help,empathy, or solace  It was my idea of the literary equivalent of sittingat my kitchen table with that friend as we shared cups of tea and whatever mywork brought to the surface.  . 



 



However,several friends urged me to compile a collection to reach a wideraudience.   While the material included here is drawn from my ownlife and experiences, I began to realize that many individuals in late middleage or old age were also struggling with issues such as the deaths of spousesand parents, aging bodies, illness, caregiving, and mapping ways forward intounknown territory alone or in very changed circumstances.



 



While Iwrote many of the poems as a way to unearth and process my reactions, it wasn’tuntil I viewed them as a whole that I saw that the majority of the pieces wereabout dearly loved people and animals who had died.  As I re-read mywords, I would have given almost anything to trade the words for another chancefor more time with the people and animals I had lost.  Sadly, life doesn’tgive any of us that option.  So, I decided to keep their memories alivethrough words and to send those words wherever this book might take them. After a year of COVID lockdown, I believe we all walk with some degree ofsadness and bewilderment as we seek to live with loss.  Although I havenever believed in closure, 




 


I likethat, not believeing in closure.




 


I do thinkthat, after loss and change, we are, at our core, resilient human beings whocan come out of the shadow of sorrow and choose to take small steps at firstand then larger ones into a future, one that is quite different but,nonetheless, beckoning.



 



Perfectword, “beckoning.) 




 


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