Two Little Poems

The more poems I read these days by writers like Robin Coste Lewis, Tracy Smith, and Claudia Rankine, the more I know deep in my bones that it is this medium that draws me most intensely.  For years, I’ve said, half in jest and half in regret, “When I grow...

Am I Civilized?

Catholic priests are not known for preaching profound sermons, so it’s a blessing that most conform to the idea of making homilies short.  Custom has it that ten minutes is the ideal length.  But every now and then, congregants are surprised, as I was a few...