Renée Alberts: an Interview

Here's a little something for Friday: an interview with Pittsburgh poet Renée Alberts by Jan Beatty on her weekly show, Prosody.

Renée is an amazing woman and poet. Her interests are myriad, her attention to detail as fine as it gets. She has a photographer's eye, a journalist's sense of story, and a poet's soul. She is a friend of mine and has been an inspiration to me in my own work; when she preaches, it is by example, and it is a sermon well worth sitting through. She has great courage and great humor.

Listen to this interview. Carefully. Then listen again. Listen to the words. She is besotted by language yet always maintains a measured control. Her compassion is as large as her humor and her vision matches both.

She is a poet to pay attention to. She is paying attention to you.

Here is the opening poem from her chapbook, No Water, which you may hear her read at the link above.

Palm Sunday

Our yard this morning is full of wings
that close and spread to map
their lungs' pulse
as they drink,
veiny stained glass, red
as a hand held up
to the sun.

Unstaked,
tomatoes go to vine.
Cabbage whites suck nectar
from their blossoms—lotuses
adrift on the chaos of
morning glory vines spiraling
hosta spires.

The cat stalks a monarch
feeding on zinnia.
She folds its wings
between her paws; this
is how we pray here, love—
with claws.

Renée Alberts

Like many a young poet, the world is her's.

I can't wait to watch her change it.

the winter fly
I spare, the cat
snatches

Issa
translated by David Lanoue

best,
Don