The Cafe of Dreams E-Book

D.L. Lang

• Herausgeber: D.L. Lang
• Kategorie: Poesie und Drama
• Sprache: Englisch

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2021

Beschreibung

The Cafe of Dreams is D.L. Lang's 11th poetry book containing poetry written between April and August 2018. It is a mixture of autobiographical, spiritual, political, and nature poetry. It features the award winning poems “The 7 Words You Cannot Say in a ‘Free’ Country”, “Is”, “Forest Whisperings”, “The Woodpecker’s Beat”, and “Laugh With Me” and several selections written for events during D.L. Lang's tenure as Poet Laureate of Vallejo, California including "Vallejo Together," "Why Poetry Matters," and "Time Unkept."

Leseprobe

The Cafe of Dreams

by D.L. Lang

Copyright © 2018 Diana L. Lang

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law. For permission requests, write to the author at the email address below:

[email protected]

poetryebook.com

Gratitude

This book is dedicated to Tim, basherti,

for his love, support, and caring for me.

I am truly grateful that you chose to buy this book.

If you enjoyed it, please take the time to review it.

Peace and love to all who read it.

Foreword

This book was cobbled together over the summer of 2018. Most of it was written between April and August 2018  It was quite an eventful summer with my featuring in Berkeley, Benicia, the McCune, Unity Day, the Vallejo March for Peace and Justice, Families Belong Together, and regularly appearing on OZCAT radio. I also was interviewed for KPFA.

This is just a tiny little chapbook. Enjoy!

These following paragraphs only enumerate the more notable poems and events I attended this year.

“The 7 Words You Cannot Say in a ‘Free’ Country” won Best in Class in Creative Writing for World Unity, Equality, and Diversity at the 2018 Marin County Fair.

On April 24th, 2018 I performed “Why Poetry Matters” and “Libraries Ignite Universes” at the Joel Fallon Scholarship benefit in Benicia, CA.

On April 25th, 2018 I performed in Fairfield, CA a set of poems with a literary theme: “What is a Poet?”, “Poetic Timing,” “Unbound,” “Why Poetry Matters” and “Libraries Ignite Universes” to benefit the Solano County Library Foundation.

On April 29th, 2018, I performed “The Choice” at the Light & Shadow Anthology launch in Benicia, CA. It also won 1st prize for Adult Free Form Poetry at the 2018 San Mateo County Fair. You can find the book at Bookshop Benicia. I performed the poem at the San Mateo County Fair on June 16th.

On May 3rd, I read “Generations” from Dragonfly Tomorrows & Dog-eared Yesterdays on OZCAT Radio’s Art Beat Show, and on August 31st, I performed “Vallejo Together.” I was also featured on the Art Beat Show alongside Tom Stanton on August 3rd, 2018.

On May 3rd, I performed “PB Poem” from Barefoot in the Sanctuary at the Participatory Budgeting Results Party in Vallejo, CA.

On May 5th, while attending the Women of Rodef Sholom’s 2018 retreat, I prayed with “Time Overdrawn” from Dragonfly Tomorrows & Dog-eared Yesterdays. This retreat inspired “Time Unkept” and “Laugh With Me.”

May 11th, I featured in Berkeley at the fabulous My Word Open Mic at Café Leila. I performed Unanswered, Choose to Be, The Carpool of Vulnerability, Penguin’s Prayer, Parallels, Time Unkept, Why Poetry Matters, Listen, Are We Free?, Greed’s Disconnect, Where Are The Heroes?, Plowshares, Radioactive Returns, Affirmations of a Dream, and Old Songs.

On May 18th, I was invited to pray at the sisterhood service with my poem “Watch This Space” that appears in A Poet’s Siddur.

My poem "Is" was inspired by a workshop in December 2017 at the Osher Marin JCC. You can find that poem in the 2018 Marin Poetry Center Anthology, Volume 21. It's appropriate that it was inspired by a happening in San Rafael. Grateful. I performed it at the September 20, 2018 anthology launch at Falkirk.

I performed "Headline Antidote" and "Vallejo Peace" at the Vallejo Rally For Peace And Justice on May 19, 2018 on the steps of city hall. That was one of my most powerful performances and it was for a holy cause, and I am so, so grateful that the organizers let me participate. "Headline Antidote" is my favorite poem ever, and it appears in Poet Loiterer. "Vallejo Peace" was originally written for the March 12, 2016 Vallejo Man March, an earlier peace march here in this beautiful city.

"For Johanna" was written for Johanna Ely for the June 5th, 2018 Benicia First Tuesday Poets.

I performed a version of “Immigrant’s Truth”  from Dragonfly Tomorrows & Dog-eared Yesterdays and “Free Them” at the June 30th rally for Families Belong Together.

I organized, hosted, and performed at Poetry in Notion at the McCune on July 15th, 2018.

Both “How to Swim Through a Tornado” and “The Woodpecker’s Beat” previously appeared in the Benicia Herald on June 15 and September 7, respectively.

“Wild Choir” was inspired by the Visions of the Wild campfire sing-a-long out at McIntyre Ranch.

“Vallejo Together” was written for the Vallejo Together organization and performed at Unity Day 2018, where I organized nine other poets to join me for the occasion as the Vallejo Poetry Showcase.

“Haifa” was written for the Vallejo Sister Cities and was brought to Haifa, Israel in a bid to become her sister city.

“The Cafe of Dreams” tells the story of how the Vallejo Poetry Society came about.

“This Poetic Iceberg” was a challenge by Erika Snyder for me to write an out of character arrogant poem. Its message resonated with many poets.

Peace and love,

D.L. Lang