Gratitude

Many thanks to everyone who made last night's edition of the Monday at Mahall's Poetry and Prose Series so remarkably beautiful. I'm having difficulty mustering adequate words, but my heart is full. I especially want to thank the evening's featured poet Jeffrey Bowen; the other "Best Cleveland Poem" anthology contributors who read (Renay Sanders, JP Armstrong, Ray McNiece, Anita Herczog [accompanied by Ryann Anderson], Steven Smith [who also provided the cover art], and Dianne Borsenik [who also served as project editor]; and the twenty or so incredible (wow!) folk who shared during the open mic. It was also very cool to see and talk with friends old and new (though there's never enough time). And I wanna give a shout out to Tim Misny, who sponsors the competition. My brain is a blur this week, but true poetry lives! It is heart, pain, laughter, protest, memory and soul. Thanks to you, life is rich.  This is Cleveland.

Hope to see you next month!