Abraham and Isaac by Thomas Dooley

View this email on a browser Forward to a friend February 23, 2017   Abraham and Isaac   Thomas Dooley

You tried to take my red metals with your wolf jaw   tongs to forge a body never to be flame-licked again but I reached out and held you   by the throat, pressed my ear to your chest that meadow   startled with magpies. You are not the first man   who tried to make my body a smoke. But here I am   to silver the air and surround you like a sky vast enough   to take your embers into itself; I've been made to carry your fires.            Copyright © 2017 Thomas Dooley. Used with permission of the author. About This Poem   "In the struggle to stay connected to his father, a son might wonder what kind of sacrifice is needed to jettison the pain (of rejection, of disapproval, of dislocation) in order to say, with honesty and generosity, 'Here I am, Dad.' When we collide with our parents' limitations and still manage to enjoy connection, we feel vast." —Thomas Dooley   Thomas Dooley is the author of Trespass (Harper Perennial, 2014). He is the artistic director of Emotive Fruition, an organization that brings poets, actors, and audiences together for live poetry.   Photo credit: Noah Barker Poetry by Dooley   Trespass (Harper Perennial, 2014)  "Bright Walls" by Richie Hofmann "Difficult Body" by Mark Wunderlich "My Father's Tie Rack" by Joan Larkin Poem-a-Day   Launched during National Poetry Month in 2006, Poem-a-Day features new and previously unpublished poems by contemporary poets on weekdays and classic poems on weekends. If you enjoy Poem-a-Day, please consider making a donation to help make it possible. Thanks for being a part of the Academy of American Poets community. To learn about other programs, including National Poetry Month, Poem in Your Pocket Day, the annual Poets Forum, and more, visit Poets.org.   You are receiving this e-mail because you elected to subscribe to our mailing list. If you would like to unsubscribe, please click here.   © Academy of American Poets 75 Maiden Lane, Suite 901, New York, NY 10038