Ancient Chinese Poetry: This show features the work of two poets. Do they express concerns many of us think about in the 21st century? Do they suggest how to adjust certain of our attitudes? All the poems are from A Hundred and Seventy Chinese Poems, translated by Arthur Waley (Knopf, 1919). (Many poems by these same authors may be found in a variety of translations.) T'ao Ch'ien (362-427): "Returning to the Fields," "Moving House," "In the quiet of the morning I heard a knock at my door," "Reading the Book of Hills and Seas." Po-Chu-I (772-846): "The Letter," "Being Visited by a Friend During Illness," "A Dream of Mountaineering." The show's theme music is Philip Aaberg's "Going-to-the-Sun," from his CD Live from Montana (Sweetgrassmusic.com).
“Meta-Verse”: The four poems on this episode make a virtue out of being self-conscious. Each poem comments on the very poem we’re reading. The...
“A Redwood, an Ancient Orchard, a Sequoia”: Do you have a favorite tree you pay special attention to when you take a routine walk? ...
“Mysterious Encounters”: Three sing-songy poems are featured on today’s episode. All three depict encounters between two individuals: all three resist our efforts to make...