One Poem and Updates

Some updates. I have completed a number of tasks this past week only to add more to my list for the upcoming week. When will I have a task free week? Good question.

CantoMundo continues to fill me. I just received this lovely email from one of the other participants about the poem I read, "The Pistol's Confession", where he wrote how the poem continued to haunt him. I sent him the poem and the beginning song.

He wasn't the first to say this about that poem. I did not realize the effect that it had, until later that night after the CantoMundo reading, when one of the other participants said that I had made more than a few cry in the audience. I did not know, but it makes me believe more in the power of the book.

Sometimes, though, I wish I could write more of lightness, butterflies, ponds, the wonder of the natural world. On occasion, I do write those poems, but they always seem hollow to me, absent of political witness. I smile so much. I feel myself happy most days - who has that every day - but it is difficult to place that orb of light onto the page so that others resonate with it. That's one of the reasons that I so admire Aracelis, because she does have that gift. There are so many poems that I have read of her work that feel me with the same warmth as her presence. She is a wonder to me in this miracle of writing. Perhaps one day I will learn how to fill float a poem rather than tangle it in thorns and lead. Sometimes, I consider myself quite funny, but that, too, is difficult to infuse into the poem. A comedic sense? I am still learning. Even my comedy is generally a little dark (although the poem that mentions the Blessed Mother farting is a personal favorite of mine. Who doesn't like a little bathroom humor?)

FOR THIS WEEK

• Review submissions for The Acentos Review
• Submit two proposals to AERA. (July 23 deadline)
• Submit the Notability article. The website was down for the journal, so I couldn't do it on Friday.
• Write a book proposal stemming from the Academy Letters article.
• Write the bullying article.
• Contact my colleagues at the local Catholic schools to craft our workshops together in teaching with technology
• Research institutional grants for River of Words and The Acentos Review
• Look into membership in the Society of Nonprofits
• Start the Nonprofit application paperwork
• Register for NCTE.

FOR AUGUST

• Write the article: "A professor's PACT": All of my files are at St. Mary's.
• Submit a Faculty Technology Group Proposal for 5 iPads for use with pre-service and in-service teachers

COMPLETED

• Emailed a friend about publications where I have published and residencies.
• Submitted the article as a first-year professor. We will see how it goes.
• Finished the Bylaws of The Acentos Review. I'm reviewing them now before I send them out to potential board members.
• Wrote a recommendation for a student.
• Wrote 5 poems while at CantoMundo. I still have to write a minimum of 15 more. I also have to do some submissions.
• Wrote an article on some strategies to use the iPad in the secondary classroom
• Read for the article on bullying: Read 10 articles, received summaries from my writing partner, coded the data, ran a few analyses. I'm ready to do the writing.
• Submitted a university support grant proposal for the workshop at NCTE (Digital Storytelling in November)
• Developed a rudimentary agenda for the NCTE presentation.