Contemplify

The poems of Todd Davis sharpen a reader’s spirit and focus, on the bloodstained teeth breaking apart the day-to-day doldrums and on the mythic imagination necessary to bear witness to this daunting moment in our species, on our planet.  Todd Davis and I spoke back in 2019 about his book Native Species and he has read his poems in the last two years on the Contemplify Backporch Advent Outpost series. Today we focus on Todd’s latest book of poems, Coffin Honey. We step into the rich imagery of characters, landscape, and emotion vibrating off the pages of his work. We also do not shy away from the thick smoke of trauma, poetry as a survival skill, the cost of risking participation in crafting such poems, and much more.  **Before we get started, I want to note that in this episode with Todd Davis we converse about sexual assault and self mutilation, in both personal and mythic stories. If that sounds like a conversation you are not comfortable listening to, we sure understand. Take care of yourself.** Visit Todd’s website at todddavispoet.com to slip through the doors of his poetry. Visit contemplify.com

Paula Huston has written a book, The Hermits of the Big Sur, that charts the history of the New Camaldoli Hermitage. A history born amidst Vatican II and World War II with even deeper contemplatives roots back to the 11th century in the mountains of Italy. Paula follows the ragtag set of novices who become the elders of the community, those who wandered to follow other calls, and those hermits who it their life’s work to be enfolded by Mystery. Paula Huston is more than author, but oblate of New Camaldoli Hermitage aka a non-monastic member of the community. She shares with us the gifts her contemplative rhythm has brought to her days, the virtues of working an olive press and writer’s pen, and gleanings from being in friendship with the monks over these decades. Visit paulahuston.com to keep tabs on her works of beauty. Visit contemplify.com

(My audio starts shaky, but gets better after 8 minutes) Bill Porter, aka Red Pine, calls the hermit life, "graduate school for the spiritually inclined." Bill Porter is a translator of Buddhist and Taoist mountain poets that uncross your third eye and waft the scent of a  fine scotch.  What can I say about Bill Porter that he won’t say better about himself? I first stumbled on his book Road to Heaven: Encounters with Chinese Hermits while on retreat. His adventures and chitchats with hermits beckoned me to discover more about this hermit tradition and the man captivated by trekking into the mountains in search of monks living off the map. Bill is credited with an uptick of interest in the hermit life in China. Stateside Bill Porter is best known under his translator name of Red Pine, translating the work of Cold Mountain, Stonehouse, Lao Tzu and others over at the granddaddy of beautiful publishing Copper Canyon. We talk about this and more.  To visit Bill Porter, well if you bump into him in his hometown. To find his work online go his publisher Copper Canyon at coppercanyonpress.org.

The hermit life is cool. That is the stone that skips across this season of Contemplify. The urging, the calling, to retreat from the hustle of the red dirt economy. To wash your face with cold water. Blink away the dust. Sit still in the sun and watch the shadows kneel in prayer. This season of Contemplify highlights a few folks who touch the hermit life by study, proximity, and by craft. There will always be those who are called to live the hermit life. Then there are those of us who tend to the hermit within. We learn from the hermit how to drop contemplative seeds into our smoothies, sing John Prine songs, and write the names of God on our hearts.

Musing from May 31, 2022

Fenton Johnson is the author of At the Center of All Beauty: Solitude and the Creative Life.  His book Geography of the Heart:  A Memoir received the American Library Association and Lambda Literary Awards for best LGBT Creative Nonfiction, while his book Keeping Faith: A Skeptic’s Journey among Christian and Buddhist Monks received a Lambda Literary and Kentucky Literary Award in Creative Nonfiction. A regular contributor to Harper’s Magazine, Johnson has received fellowships from the Guggenheim Foundation and the National Endowment for the Arts and has been featured on Terry Gross’s Fresh Air.  He is emeritus professor at the University of Arizona and serves on the faculty of the creative writing program of Spalding University. Today we talk about At the Center of All Beauty, contemplative principles, the interior landscape as the frontier, embracing humility, the importance of a community of practice and of course solitude and the creative life. Check out Fenton's work at fentonjohnson.com Visit contemplify.com

Brie Stoner is a juggernaut of creativity who channels these forces as a musician, artist, podcaster, writer, teacher, and mother. Her latest project is a podcast called Unknowing; a conversation series with artists, spiritual teachers, authors and friends as she explores the practice of unknowing as the (beautiful, surprising, messy) spiritual path of creative possibility. As some of you know, we were co-hosts on the podcast Another Name for Every Thing with Richard Rohr. Check out Brie Stoner’s work at thejourneyofbecoming.com (While there you can support Brie’s work as an independent creative. I am a big believer and supporter of independent artists, and Brie is one to support. Join her community of support today) Follow Brie Stoner on the socials | Instagram | Twitter | Patreon Visit Contemplify.com for more

Amy Frykholm is a writer, scholar, and journalist. Long time listener’s will recognize Amy as the second guest ever on Contemplify when we spoke about her book on Julian of Norwich. For those new to Amy's story, she has a PhD from Duke University and is a senior editor at The Christian Century. Her wry wit and adventurous spirit deserve a place in her accolades too. Today we talk about her latest work, Wild Woman: A Footnote, the Desert, and My Quest for an Elusive Saint. This cheeky quest follows Amy in the footsteps of St. Mary of Egypt as she seeks insight and inspiration from this wild woman, equal parts mystery and mystic. I am thrilled to have Amy back on Contemplify.  Check out Amy’s work at amyfrykholm.com. Follower Amy on Twitter | Instagram | Facebook Visit contemplify.com

Stephen Mitchell is a translator, author, and poet. I was first introduced to his work through his translation of the Tao Te Ching. Stephen was educated at Amherst, the Sorbonne, and Yale, and de-educated through intensive Zen practice. He is married to Byron Katie, founder of The Work. Today we talk about his latest work, The First Christmas: A Story of New Beginnings that tells the story of Jesus birth with imagination, humor, historical context and red-blooded gusto! As someone who has been steeped in Christmas narrative my entire life, I was elated by this telling packed with new perspectives and wise characters (including the ox and the donkey alongside their human counterparts). You can check out Stephen’s work at stephenmitchellbooks.com. Visit Contemplify.com

Blessed Darkness and Blessed Light, this Advent season. Here we are again, In the midst of Season Two of Contemplify and I am sliding in another bonus episode part of the 2nd annual Backporch Advent Outpost on Contemplify. Today’s poet is Chris Dombrowski. I first read Chris’ book Ragged Anthem and then his earlier work in the book Earth Again. It wakes me to the day at hand. Dombrowski’s poetry has been a constant companion to me during this pandemic, his connection to earthbound attention, humor, musicality of our days, longing born from loss, whole-makin and restoration. I cannot say enough about the poetry of Chris Dombrowski. May these poems catch you in the moment you are ready to receive them. Chris Dombrowski, will be reading three poems, ‘Francis’ from Ragged Anthem and ‘Possible Psalm’ and ‘Sustenance’ from Earth Again. There is a link in the shownotes for this episode at Contemplify.com to order Chris’ books. Visit Chris Dombrowski’s website at cdombrowski.com. Take a sip, breathe a little deeper. Here is Chris Dombrowski pouring us an Advent nightcap.