Vox Populi
A curated webspace for Poetry, Politics, and Nature with over 20,000 daily subscribers and over 8,000 archived posts.
Michael Simms: Prospero needs a little nap
Dear friends,
Thank you so much for subscribing to Vox Populi, this curated webspace for poetry, politics, and nature. As some of you know, VP began in 2014 as a newsletter for anti-fracking activists in Western Pennsylvania. It featured political articles, scientific reports, interviews and satire in order to raise consciousness about the dangers of fracking and to prevent our communities from falling into the hands of corporate vandals. As VP’s readership grew, I started including poems and personal essays, and later films and book reviews in order to keep the newsletter from being too enviro geeky. Well, we lost the fracking battle, and predictably western Pennsylvania’s streams, wetlands and ground water have been poisoned, our local governments have been corrupted, and cancer pockets have “mysteriously” appeared through the region. But on the left, we take our wins where we find them, right? And VP has been a winner. The number of daily subscribers has grown steadily to over 16,000, and our posts are often picked up by other publications.
This week marks the ninth anniversary of Vox Populi. During that time, I’ve posted two, sometimes three pieces a day: roughly 40% poems, 30% political articles, 10% personal essays, 10% short films, and 10% humor, book reviews, and miscellaneous oddities. A total of about 7,000 posts. Whew! I need to slow down a bit.
I’m 69 years old, and in good health, but truthfully, I’m feeling the years closing in on me. This week my cousin Susie Belver, a brave woman who proudly served in the Abilene, Texas police department, will be buried. I’ve said goodbye to so many people I’ve loved.
This morning I woke with blood covering my right eye. It looked ghastly, like something you’d see in a vampire movie. My wife Eva, my dear one-and-only, drove me to the Urgent Care unit 15 miles away where the nurse took one look at my sclera and said, “Oh, we see that all the time. College students get drunk, vomit violently, and blow out a capillary in their eyeball.”
She raised an eyebrow at me and said, “Do you drink?”
“Actually,” I answered, “I’m in AA where I tell a story about that very subject.” I looked at my watch. “How much time do you have?”
She laughed and said, “Probably not enough for the whole story.”
My peeper, as it turns out, is fine. The broken capillary will heal, but I need to reduce the strain on my eyes.
So starting tomorrow, I’ll be cutting my daily routine in front of the computer from twelve hours to eight. I’m going to nap every afternoon, increase my cardio workout from twice to thrice a week, and post only one piece to VP each day, loosely following this schedule:
Monday: a contemporary poem
Tuesday: an essay or article
Wednesday: a contemporary poem
Thursday: an essay or article
Friday: a legacy poem
Saturday: wild card!
Sunday: a spiritual/inspirational piece
Vox Populi will endure, albeit at a slower pace. As Prospero, Shakespeare’s reclusive magician, who may be the Bard’s stand-in, says at the end of the play when the actors have left the stage, and the life-like illusion they created is melting into thin air, allowing our own small lives to fade into the dreams they always were:
We are such stuff
As dreams are made on, and our little life
Is rounded with a sleep.
Copyright 2023 Michael Simms.
Michael Simms is the editor of Vox Populi. His recent books include a collection of poetry Nightjar (Ragged Sky, 2022) and a fantasy novel The Green Mage (Madville, 2023). He lives in the historic Pittsburgh neighborhood of Mount Washington with his wife Eva and their kelpie Josie.
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I’m so grateful for all you do, Michael. I’ve taught essays & poems you’ve published on Vox Populi & been honored to have my own poems featured.
Thank you❤️
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Thanks, Lisa! I admire your work as well.
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Mike–thanks for all you do! Take care of yourself!
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Thanks, Jim!
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Dear Michael,
You’ve made a huge contribution to my life, and the lives of all of us who have looked forward to seeing new treasures from Vox Populi in our inboxes every day. You give us beauty, understanding, joy, information, ways to wrap our heads around the complexities of living in our world now, and the many facets of being human. I have shared countless essays and poems, and go back to many over and over. Bravo. And, although you will now be working at a less than bionic pace, it will be more than enough. Bless you and I wish you continued good health and peace.
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What a lovely thing to say, Beth. Thank you!
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Thanks for letting us know, Michael. Glad you’re taking care of yourself. And thank you as always for Vox Populi, and for your own writing and for your friendship. jb
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Thanks, Joan!
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Michael: Maybe I should adopt you? Dammit—We’re the same age. We’ll have to split the lawyer however, we being doppelgängers and all, but I think you’re ready for the life of a pastoralist…its easy on the eye, and I promise a good sip of “agua purificado” as Juan at La “Casa de Hespuedes” in Merida bottles himself and doles out to every new
customer. Keeps you viciously dehydrated.
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Thanks for the offer, Shawn, but I’m going to pass. I grew up in cow country and I don’t want to go back. But the pastoral life suits you. Congratulations!
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You’ve been doing a lot of giving, Mike, and if cutting back helps you, it helps me. Merci beaucoup and take care.
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Thanks, Andrea.
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Michael, take good care of yourself~YOU are a wonder– a friend, a multi-talented writer/poet and more. Vox Populi is one of a kind. Nothing like it. I spread the word near and far. Please send me your sna
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Thank you!
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Dearest Michael, first of all, do take care of that eye — you need to be able to wink at all of your fans out there, & at the spring blooms ready to pop out! I’ve had the same scary thing happen three times, & and you’re right, it looks scarier than it is. And hooray to you, hooray that you will be slowing down just a tad: I often was in awe and also a little worried about the huge amount of time it must have taken you to be such a brilliantly selective editor of such an indispensable and varied review. The hours and hours — and this for years and years, simply out of the humongous generosity of your heart! VOX POLULI is, and will continue to be (thanky, thanky) my first read of the morning, here, on the hem of the Pacific on California’s central coast, so very far away from where you & Eva live. You are a seriously talented & important editor — &the poems, articles, videos & essays you publish keep me (and my 80 year old brain) happy, curious, challenged & and informed. Thank you for that. And, most importantly, the VERY good news of this all is that I hope that the time away from VOX POPULI will be spent walking, musing, taking deep breaths, & stopping to look at this & that around you which might just feed new poems, new writings **by you!** Go take long walks, nose in the air — I dare speak for all your readers: we’re delighted you’ll take the time to enjoy it!
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Thank you so much for your wonderful posts and comments. You are an indispensable part of this enterprise. You are such a wonderful poet and such a sweet soul. Take good care of yourself!
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Michael, Take good, good care. You do so much for poetry!
Carol
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Thanks, Carol!
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Michael, I don’t see my rather long and most affectionate fan-note I left here this morning — could it be that the list of responses is too long to publish here in its entirety? I sure hope so… Do let me know for I do want to be part of the gratitude and friendship harmonizing chorus wishing you nothing but the very very best!
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Thanks, Laure-Anne, but I’ve checked the guts of the website and it appears that we never received the note. The website is capable of handling thousands of responses, I don’t think it was lost on this end. I’m so sorry.
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I will immediately post another comment — I can NOT let this just disappear into thin air!
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Did not know the history of this terrific newsletter. I love it all the more. Glad your peeper is healing.
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Thanks, Lori! Glad to have you along for the journey.
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May your new routine be a blessing. May you heal quickly. May you enjoy the future. There is much fun to be had. I can talk about it because I am 85!
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Thank you so much, Rose Mary. Sage advice.
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Dear Michael,
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div> I totally understand where you’re coming from.
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Thanks, Johanna!
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Michael, Thank you thank you for all you have done – those many posts that I’ve read. Heal and be well soon.
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Thanks, Lex!
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Congratulations Michael! I fully support this. Our bodies are constantly reminding us of the toll of whatever we are doing, even when it is a “good thing.” 12 hours a day is too much, dude! I LOVE VP and will continue to love it. It is my daily go-to among many other things. I’ve got a few years on you–I’m 74 and I have slowed down massively in the last 4 years, some of it due to the massive slow-down w Covid which coincided with my hitting my 70’s. I now bake meditation and slow walking and yoga into every day. I do the Zen things–including putting lot’s of space between activities and making for doing so-called “nothing.” I’ve experienced a bunch of health issues that are not life threatening, but the message is to back up and slow down and I have. I get a lot of writing done in spite of this and other benefits have accrued including a greater sense of ease and peace. Dream well, my friend and allow your body and mind to slow down and enjoy the moments!
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How wonderful, Alison. Thank you!
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whew. because it’s all about me/us, as i read your post i was mostly relieved to hear that vp will still be with us (ok ok, i was also glad to hear your eyes will be fine). dear michael, like many others i thank you for your daily gifts of beauty and hope, and occasionally rage; i’d say you have more than earned a bit of rest from your bountiful labors. also excellent timing: go dig in the dirt in the sun! thanks again, be well
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Abby, you are the tip of the VP spear! Rage on, my friend. And thanks for the good wishes.
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Rest, Sir! Time marches and some of us begin to totter, but we keep moving. I love your posts and will take what I can get. Your pace is still better than mine. Do what you love!
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Thanks, Barbara. You are an inspiration to behold!
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Well played, Michael. As on an airplane flight, make sure your own mask is on first. Take good care. I look forward to the new streamlined Vox Pop.
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Thanks, Mike!
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Thank you, Michael Simms, for your work. I love VP!
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Thanks, Julia!
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I don’t thin that an eight-hour-day is exactly taking it easy. You’re doing all of us, who have something to say, a great service. So please look after yourself and smell the roses!
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Thanks so much, Sabine!
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Dear Michael, absolutely take care of you! I know about eye strain, and about the need to slow down. We’ve all been on a hamster wheel running. Go outside and watch spring unfold. It’s glorious this year! And thank you for all you do!
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And thank YOU for all you do, Kim. You’ve helped me so much the last two years.
And yes. Spring and All.
M.
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Thank you, Michael, for all you have done and are doing for poetry and the arts. I am thrilled to have had my poems published on Vox Populi. Please take care of yourself and keep doing your good work at a slower pace. I’m glad to hear that our revels have not ended.
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Thanks, Carolyn. Love your poems.
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You might be getting 16,000 responses of get well and thank you. Here’s another one!
Gwen.
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Thanks, Gwen. Small suffering. Lots of good wishes. The best investment I’ve made in quite a while.
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Dear Michael,
I am so sorry to hear about your eye! Last month I had a similar episode and also reduced the hours in front of the monitor.
You are as hard working and as consistent as people I have met. I think the new plan is fantastic and it will be as it should be today and going forward. Thank you for all your effort so far, it is priceless the contribution to the community you have made.
Here in Argentina, we are also fighting against fracking in the Atlantic, against lithium extraction, pig farms to export to China and fumigations in the countryside that exports cereals to the world bringing in the dollars to pay the external debt – no political party will do anything against it. But we are hopeful that some of these battles can be won.
Relax in naps, enjoy the work-out, the love with your wife and the quieter life. More than deserved!
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Thank you, Lena. I love your films, and I admire your activism. Hooray for you!
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For sure, go easy. Glad you aren’t quitting. I’ve enjoyed your work for years.
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Thank you, Joe. I appreciate your reaching out.
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Thank you, Michael. I never knew the history. So sorry about the anti fracking loss. I’ve only been following VP for about a year but really love it. Maybe one of the writers you feature could help with the work? Sincerely, Lita Kurth
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Thanks, Lita. I appreciate your dedication! With the new cutbacks, I think I’ll be able to handle the workload now..
Warmly, M.
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Michael,
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Thanks, Susie!
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Oh Michael, take care of yourself! Vox Populi is a daily gift for me, such a wide array of writers. I think your plan is a good one, and all your faithful readers will be fine. Breathe, relax, and heal.
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Thanks, Valerie!
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First and foremost thank you, dear Michael, for these postings day after day after day for year after year after year — such immense generosity of your editorial genius and fabulous research, there are many writers, videographers, artists, essayists & poets I wouldn’t know — and revisit often — had it not been for your Vox Populi. And what good news, old friend (said the speaker in her 80th year!) for taking time off from that little screen. You’ll **still** be the first email I open every morning — and, oh my, how I look forward to those posts. And, yes, please: do take long walks, Michael, nose in the air and eyes on those little things that will catch your gaze & need you to stop by them, end spend a minute or so watching them, and — who knows — tell you their story, so you can then share that with lucky us. For most importantly, friend, you’ll have more time to write! More of your poems, please! More of your prose. Your plan looks perfect, and, none of your readers will blame you if, from time to time, you want to take some time off. We’ll sulk, of course, and sigh and mumble, but with patient understanding. Seriously, Michael, thank you for your stunningly formidable generosity!
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Oh, thank you so much for this Laure-Anne. You are so brilliant and radiant…
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Do take care. I’m sorry for the loss of your cousin and the other challenges you are facing. Heal, and feel peace. We will enjoy whatever you post. Thank you for your work.
Laurie Hoen Artist, Art Instructor HoenFineArts.com http://HoenFineArts.com
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Thanks for your good wishes, Laurie!
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Thank you!
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Brilliant plan Michael – taking care of yourself while taking care of your loyal readers. I have looked forward to Vox Populi ever since I first discovered it and have treasured many posts, especially the poetry. Be well. with gratitude, Janice
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Thanks Janice! I appreciate your support!
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You have given us three pieces of good news in this posting.
1) Your eye will heal and be fine.
2) You are being wise in taking good care of you.
3) Vox Populi will continue.
Michael, you are a wonderful gift all around
Thanks! – Jackie
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Thanks, Jackie. You’ve been beside me since VP first started. I value your companionship on this strange journey.
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Take good care of your eyes. Eye exercise may help reduce the eyestrain.
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Thanks, John! I appreciate your care.
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Rest well, and feel better.
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Thanks, Robbi!
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And thank YOU, MIchael Simms, for all you have done for so many of us. Your work has improved our lives, lightened our load, made us laugh, reminded us of our failures, hinted by publishing our work that we might actually have some skills, and often suggested we could be better human beings both personally and politically. I can only hope it has done at least some of that for you as well. It’s a good idea to cut back on the screen time for sure. And, by the way, the practitioner was correct, that “sub-conjunctival hemorrhage” is very common. They’re often caused by something as simple as hard coughing. Like it or not, as we get older (and at 78, I’m in that group) our blood vessels, including those tiny ones called capillaries, become more fragile. And just as they easily break under our thinning skin, so can it happen in an eye. And, like all the bruises we get more frequently, they slowly go away. And, on good days, as they go away, we stick around. Just remember to check the obituaries every morning and if you’re in there, go back to bed for you probably won’t be there the next day.
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Thanks, Mel. I never know how you will respond: poet, physicians assistant, teamster, environmental activist, father, husband, actor, senatorial candidate… You are a man of many parts. Thank you for bringing all of them on this long strange road.
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We are all of many parts, often undiscovered.
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Take care of yourself. Life is precious as is eyesight. So says someone who has 5 pairs of glasses in play.
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Five pairs? My, I have trouble keeping up with 2. And thanks for trusting me with your amazing poems, Barbara!
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Thanks for what you do. I have always envied your work ethic. Close your eyes; listen to a gurgling stream and a Goldfinch sing.
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Thanks, Leo. I appreciate your daily attention to VP all these years. I feel we’ve come a long way together.
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Wise choice Michael. We treasure your work.
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Thanks, Kathleen. Love your poems.
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Dear Mike: Thanks for all you have done and do, and I applaud your resolution to “eas(ier) does it.” Stay well and keep truckin’. All admiring best, Syd
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Thanks, Syd. Love your prose and poetry.
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Dear Michael, I am so grateful for your Vox Populi since I began subscribing years ago. I read your offerings each day. It’s deeply good news that you will now make the commitment to slow down so that you can take care of your aging body’s needs. I understand that. I’m nearly 84.
Thanks so much, Susan Sailer
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Oh, Susan. You’ve always been a model of kind-wisdom for me. Bless you!
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So glad you are okay and so glad you are taking some necessary care of yourself. You have given so much to us all. And it’s not easy to learn to save some for self and family— bravo to you for setting a new schedule. I imagine youll still be far more productive than most of us.
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div>I’ve just started
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Thanks, Hayden. Love your poems!
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Thank you for being there . Take care of yourself.
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Thanks, Diane. I appreciate your good wishes.
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I had similar problem since 2 years ago. But i can not explain what was behind it.
The age, 64 -65. The changing place from cold humid to dry desert with air-conditioning almost 20 hours out of 24.
Nose is dripping all the time.
When was enjoying a novel by Bernardine Evaristo i started to see dots on my left eye. The ophthalmologist said you have to adapt. But after another year it grew into black thin lines and leaked into the right eye.
I am playing books now instead of reading it. Leaving what ever available time for my own writing.
No harm done. Only last month i had a new release by an Iraqi new press. On contemporary American fiction.
Lines are not fewer and thin red veins took more liberty over the white sector of both eyes. But one can not help it. My mother in law needs an operation to overcome cataract. It is very common in dry places.
I hope you do not reach cataract problem. One neighbour lost sight altogether after two bad operations.
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Thanks for sharing, Saleh! Take care of yourself, my friend.
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You’ve introduced me to wonderful writers and ideas, and as a Canadian I appreciate the perspective you bring to VP. Take good care, Michael.
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Thanks, Helen!
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michael. you deserve a break. you also deserve some assistant editors. napping is great
rick
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Is this a job application, Rick? You’re hired!
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Michael, this is such a beautiful, lyrical piece. Believe me, I hear you.
Doug
Sent from my iPad
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Thanks, Doug. Right from the beginning, you trusted me with your poems. Thank you!
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Thank you, Michael! Be well, enjoy your hours!
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Thanks, Rich. Be well.
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Prospero, half the joy you’ve bought us now for years will still overflow our cups. It is a generous concession to time and stress, and I, for one, am deeply, humbly grateful.
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Louise, thank you for your brilliant contributions to VP as well as your gracious spirit.
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Take care of yourself. Michael!
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Thank you, Robert. Each of your poems is a small miracle. Thank you for trusting me with them. Take care of your health.
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