Vox Populi
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Jan Beatty: My Father’s Houses
My father stands lean and young
in the formica kitchen, drinking a shot of Imperial.
He shoots his head back/swallows it all/
slams down the shot glass/turns around and says:
That’s good stuff.
I still have the shooter
with a wild bull on the front that says:
Have a Snort!
He gave me the blueprint,
but my greedy heart wants more.
Every day he worked in the house
of the mill, making steel.
Every day returning to the house
on Skyland Drive, filling it with
the pain of fitting steel sheets.
When the house of my father’s body left,
I watched and waited for him.
I said: I don’t want what’s left
on the mountain. I said:
What do you dream of now?
He hands me the map
to the house of dreaming:
The buried treasure of you
is dying—you’re watching so closely
that you’re missing the world.
~~~~~
Copyright 2025 Jan Beatty. From the anthology What the House Knows (Terrapin, 2025) edited by Diane Lockward.
Jan Beatty’s eighth book, Dragstripping, was published by the University of Pittsburgh Press, 2024. Her memoir, American Bastard, won the Red Hen Nonfiction Award. Her other books include The Body Wars and Jackknife: New and Selected Poems, which won the Paterson Poetry Prize. She is Professor Emerita at Carlow University, where she directed creative writing, Madwomen in the Attic workshops, and the MFA program.
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Wow. What fine poem.
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Yes, a fine poem about father and daughter…
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“The buried treasure of you
is dying—you’re watching so closely
that you’re missing the world.”
Jan Beatty knocks it out of the park again… I have been a huge fan for the longest time! Thank you, Jan.
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Yes, I love Jan’s work.
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Yes. A wonderful poem!
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Wonderful poem.
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Excellent. Moving.
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Wonderful conversation last night and this this morning! Jan is everywhere, and this poem shows why.
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Boom!
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Yes, boom.
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–Thank you for this map to the house of dreaming–
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Wow 💪🌫️🙌💔
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What an extraordinary voice!
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Jan is an astounding poet.
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YES to that poem. To quote one of the lines from this loving and powerful poem: “That’s good stuff”!
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Yes, it is. Very good stuff.
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Another stunning poem by a fantastic poet.
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Agreed!
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Jan Beatty is the best!❤️
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Yes, she is!
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