A FEAST OF BERRYS' for Carole Leslie

My brother, Kris, thrills to throwing himself into blackberry bushes, whenever he is in England, visiting from Melbourne, leaving his beloved COLLECTED WORKS. He does not so much as throw himself literally, moreso, he trusts the BERRYBUSH to support him...as does poetry. Poetry has been a life-support system for so many of us, tho i am pushing it, to say it sustained me for the last 30 years. i should have TRUSTED...but i didn't ....not wholly/not truly. There was always a thread of poetry running thru these years, that i somehow maintained thru my publishing effort; collecting books - notably BLACK SPARROW PRESS  - directly from JOHN MARTIN, to whom i give the occasional phone-call in Santa Rosa - he still checks-in to the office !! ; and great correspondences with MARILYN KITCHELL (Salt-Works Press) & MICHAEL TARACHOW (Pentagram Press) - but where are they now ? Casualties of POETRY  or worse ? i am getting off the subject that i never, in fact, started = WENDELL BERRY - and i am not going to now !!! JUST TO SAY, CAROLE LESLIE...that these fotos are for you, as follow-up to your facebook post of that beautiful poem of WENDELL'S from SABBATHS. It is poems like these that remind us that poetry is a sustainment in our lives. i should trust myself, like Kris, and throw myself into the BERRYBUSH of life. (4 april 2012 - golden goji hermitage)

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