BEDROOM
16 May 2026
This morning I’d like to pay tribute to my good friend Eleanor Adams, born on this day in 1916. A skilled gardener, sheep farmer and devoted pianist, she died in January 2016, just short of her centennial. Deep into old age, she would learn poems by heart, and could recite them flawlessly. She would have enjoyed the work of Alberto Ríos.
*Please read all the way to the bottom to see detals about Christian’s upcoming events— INCLUDING TODAY’S READING—retreats, and her mention in Poets & Writers magazine.
“Bedroom” by Alberto Ríos (b. 1952)
Ceiling fan, gentle great-grandchild of the palm frond. Book, you are a little second apartment inside this room. Mirror, I would recognize you anywhere. Bed, you are the space capsule we lie in as we prepare for liftoff. Desk lamp, you make magicians of us all for half a second. Curtain, you are ready to be drawn on the theater of the world. Clock, you are the taxi meter tracking the ride of our lives. Pillow, you are the patient childhood dog we still lie against. Chest of drawers, you are the file cabinet of good looks, Chair, secret love, we always come back, falling into your waiting arms. Bedsheet, your wrinkles become our wrinkles. Painting, you allow us to look through the wall at another world. Carpet, you are the surprising mulch of the pine forest in the desert. Blanket, under you I feel my mother’s first, most profound hope for me.
“As if It Were Him” by Alberto Ríos (b. 1952) El peso me quiere, she says to me, Her grandson. Weight loves me. We laugh, but she says, No, It is completely true. A willful creature. Her husband. After Margarito’s death, She has let his hands come back to touch hers. She has let him hold her. It’s taken all these years, But he has found a way to come back to me. She has said yes, and yes again As if that weight were him. Yes, A shower of confetti and yeses Spinner her to that kiss. Weight loves me, she says, Where no one else will, That man so long ago— We are intimate again under my dresses. He knows the folds of my skin. Excuse me for saying so, she says— Remembering for a moment I am too young, but her happiness Enough to make good of it all— I am in love with this second man, This husband new and all over me again.
Write about a room you know well—your bedroom, kitchen, even your hallway or porch. Or write about the love between an older person and a younger one: a grandparent or a grandchild, or two friends of different generations.
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ONGOING AND UPCOMING EVENTS WITH CHRISTIAN
LOCAL READING
Please join us TODAY on Saturday, May 16th for a reading at Unnameable Books. This is a marvelous store, and includes both new and secondhand books. The address is 66 Avenue A, Turners Falls, MA.
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Poetry and prose, fiction & non-fiction, read by Christian McEwen, Edite Cunha, Maria Lauenstein & Trish Crapo.
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ALL WELCOME!!
World Enough & Time:
Writing & Meditation, Creativity & Slowing Down
For more than eight years, a small group of us have been meeting via Zoom one evening a week. We’ve just celebrated our 250th gathering! Each session begins with a brief meditation, followed by a reading and discussion (Ada Limón, Jane Hirshfield, Ocean Vuong…) after which everyone writes for 25-30 minutes. How did that go? For the last fifteen minutes we listen to what each other has to say.
Thursday evenings: 6:15pm to 8:15pm EST via Zoom
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BOOK NEWS
POETS & WRITERS has listed Christian’s book as one of the best books for writers! Read about it here:
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