Mary Oliver

 

Last Tuesday, we watched “Mary Oliver: Saved By the Beauty of the World,” an American Masters program on PBS. For the first time ever, I watched TV with my notebook open in front of me, taking notes. It was touching to see so many pictures of her young, wide open face. And the lineup of celebrities who helped pay tribute! Stephen Colbert, Ada Limón, Oprah, Jason Reynolds…wow.

Looking back on my notes, I realized that the were enough turns (or segments) in Mary Oliver’s life for a haiku sonnet: four 5-7-5 haiku ending with one 5 or 7 syllable couplet. And so a new form is born: the biographical haiku sonnet! My poem goes from childhood, to teen years, to adulthood. Next comes the death of her beloved, Molly Malone Cook, and Mary Oliver gets the last word with a line from her poem, “Wild Geese.” 

Goodbye Iris

 

 

Goodbye Iris

Mom’s iris thrived
in the dry
Eastern Colorado climate.
Here,
I fear,
they won’t survive.

This low spot
is the plot
with sun
but it floods.
Their feet stay wet
and rot.

Nothing
and no one
lasts forever.
We must adapt
when it no longer works
to persevere.

I hope she would understand –
I tried.
And though not with iris
there are a thousand 
other ways
I keep her memory alive.

©Mary Lee Hahn, 2026 draft

 

 

Here For the Journey

 

 

This poem is a 7-7-7-7 poem: 7th book on my shelf (Amanda Gorman's CALL US WHAT WE CARRY), turned to the 7th page, using the 7th line to begin a 7-line poem.

 

 

Swimming Pool, August

 

Painting the Sky

 

 

 

 

Canadian wildfires are raging. Much of the NE USA is blanketed in smoke. 

Thumbs

 

Written under the influence of Billy Collins.

Digging...or Cutting

 

Summer Triptych

 

Summer Triptych – For the Teachers

I.

Freedom is the classroom door closed and locked.

Shelves are covered with craft paper,

desk drawers are perhaps organized

or else abandoned in clutter.

It can all

wait.

II.

A black swallowtail dips

to the dill

time shifts

from calendar and clock

to caterpillar and bloom.

III.

Chicory appears

along roadsides and railroads:

blue brackets 

that begin and end

this season of necessary

loosening.

©Mary Lee Hahn, 2026

Ode To My Garden At Twilight

 

Summer Is

 

Self Portrait

 

A Villanelle for May

 

This is Just to Say

 

It is with relief that this NPM comes to a close. I've learned lots about writing poetry this month. There is power in working the same form day after day. You go deep and learn it well. You start to feel it in your bones, or in my case, start to speak in three syllable chunks. Similarly, there is power in trying to put big ideas into small containers. Synonyms were my friend, I learned to work the titles, and every now and then I got a rush of joy when I stuck a landing. Brevity was both a bane and a joy. I'm definitely ready to use more words and write more actual POETRY.

I also learned lots from reading the news every day. First of all, journalists are amazing. The number and variety of stories is endless. Bad news is way more relentless than my previous glances at headlines revealed. But there is also always good news to be found. It pays to be patient because things change with about the same frequency as they erupt. When all else fails, looking out the window or walking in the garden is the perfect antidote. Even just the act of making something every day and showing up with it in public helped put the news into perspective. 

Art matters.

King Charles Speaks Truth to Power

 

"...even though the royals may only have soft power, hearing Charles advocate for NATO like that is striking..." via NPR's Up First newsletter

Look Away From the Screen

 

“There’s a New Phishing Scam: Fake Invitations”

 “The trick with this phishing scam — and why it works so well — is that the email address belongs to someone you know. The invite originates in their inbox. Because they themselves have been hacked.” Read more in the NYT article.

Ineffective Ways to Negotiate

 

Trump Cancels Aides’ Trip for Iran Talks: ‘We Have All the Cards’ 

“The president said he pulled his team from the flight shortly before takeoff,

and he told the Iranians they could negotiate by telephone instead.”

via the NYT

Science vs. Wonder

 

Norway’s Century-Long Watch on the Northern Lights by Alexa Robles-Gil in the NYT

Less of a Poem, More of a TED Talk

 

Sometimes it's impossible to find poetry in the news...

A World Apart

 

Today's News is Outside Your Front Door

 

A River Runs Through It

 

Upon the 50th anniversary of the publication of Norman Mclean’s novella,

A River Runs Through It. NYT article here.

Shooting Spree

 

NYT article “Haunted by ‘Dark Thoughts,’ Louisiana Father Kills 8 Children,”

by Eduardo Medina, Christina Morales, and Johnny Diaz.

Primatology

 

Making Good

 

The Good List: A weekly inventory of ideas, rituals and cultural artifacts to add joy to your days. Hosted by Melissa Kirsch, via the NYT.

Panel Advances Trump’s Triumphal Arch, Even as Key Member Suggests Changes

 

Read the article here.

Al Jazeera's Europe News Today

 

War in the Middle East

 

President vs. Pope

 

Orban Concedes Defeat