After my father died, my childhood memories came flooding forward with a force I wasn’t expecting. I remembered his swooped back hair, his over washed jeans, his too loud laugh. I remembered watching the same films with him over and over again, lazing on the couch during hot summer days, threading worms onto our fishing lines.

At his funeral, I forgot his addiction and spoke instead about what he taught me. His temper made me patient and understanding, the times when he behaved badly made me kind to others, his work made me want to travel the world, and his love of music reassured me that it was okay to be a poet.

Later, other lessons from my mother and grandmother rushed ahead until I pieced the most important ones together into poetry.

Please enjoy a sample of pieces* from my ten-part lesson series below. The rest can be found in my debut  collection, More than you were. 

Thank you to the Fem Lit Mag for publishing a few of these pieces in October, 2016.