YOU DON'T WANT ME DREAMING OF YOU!

I've been having this recurring dream of being at a dinner party, and the hosts' daughter comes into the dining room for some reason, recognizes me and identifies me (to the other guests who hadn't known) as a poet. And that she loves my book Reproductions...which she pulls from a shoulder bag that suddenly appears on her shoulder! And she begs me to read from it.

And the other guests are intrigued (by now the meal is mostly finished and we're just lingering over coffee) and good-naturedly ask to hear me read as well. So I tell the daughter to choose the poem she wants to hear, and she chooses one of the darker ones in Reproductions...which, anyway, is comprised of mostly "dark" poems such that John had no choice but to laugh at me (wink).

Okay, so I read the poem. The daughter's eyes fill with tears, says she wants to write poems like I do, then runs away from the room.

I look around the table and suddenly realize that most of the guests are looking at me with something like horror. And the daughter's father leans toward me and says, "You have to discourage my daughter from being a poet!"

And the mother leans towards me and adds, "Please. She's fragile..."

And I shrug and say, "Sure.

Which surprises everyone. The father says, "Just like that?"

And I say, "Sure. If you want me to say discouraging words, I will."

A surprised silence, which I then address by saying, "Look. It doesn't matter what I say. If she takes my discouragement to heart, then she might as well not be a poet. And if she ignores what I say, then she is meant to be a poet and it really won't matter what anyone else says!"

The mother collects herself, and calls her daughter to return to the room. She returns. I look at her and ask, "How old are you?"

For some reason, I can't remember what age she mentions. But I remember that I said, "Okay, you've got two more years to write angst-ridden poems. After that, get over yourself. Then you might write poems that'd matter to others outside your mirror."

That's all I remember of the dream. Now, of course I'm not positing a rule here re that angst thing (in fact, were that a rule, I'd dispute it). Just, uh, sharing a dream...Sip. Morning coffee.

Anyhooooooot, here's my latest list of relished books and wines! That's what y'all were waiting for, right?

BOOKS:
THE HUMBLE TRAVELOGUES OF MR. IAN WORTHINGTON WRITTEN FROM LAND & SEA (OR NOTES ON THE LIFE AND LETTERS), poems by Sandra Simonds

SELAH, poems by Joshua Corey

WHAT'S THE MATTER, poems by Jordan Stempleman

IN THE MIDDLE DISTANCE, poems by Linda Gregg

2 POEMS FROM THE BOTTOM OF THE BARREL, poems by Logan Ryan Smith

WHEN HALF A BODY SINGS, poem manuscript by Addie Tsai

THE BOOK OF OCEAN, poems by Maryrose Larkin

IN DANGER, poems by Suzanne Lummis

THE GIRL WITH THE GALLERY: EDITH GREGOR HALPERT AND THE MAKING OF THE MODERN ART MARKET, biography by Lindsay Pollock

THREE CUPS OF TEA: ONE MAN'S MISSION TO FIGHT TERRORISM AND BUILD NATIONS...ONE SCHOOL AT A TIME, memoir/journalism by Greg Mortenson and David Oliver Relin

THE FLAMENCO ACADEMY, novel by Sarah Bird

O PIONEERS!, novel by Willa Cather

ROSES FOR MAMA, novel by Janette Oke

PAGES FOR YOU, novel by Sylvia Brownrigg

BURGLARS CAN'T BE CHOOSERS, novel by Lawrence Block


WINES:
1997 Behrens & Hitchcock merlot "Rudy's Cuvee" Napa Valley
1990 Rausan Segla
1996 Fox Creek Reserve Shiraz
2004 Dutch Henry chardonnay
1990 Troplong Mondot
2005 Patz and Hall chardonnay
2003 Kistler chardonnay Sonoma Valley
1993 Anne & Francois Gros Clos de Voguet
1989 Ch. La Conseillant