Word of Mouth welcomes U.S. Beat Laureate Poet John Burroughs

​July 31 @ MOTR Pub at 6 pm
1345 Main, Cincinnati  

JOHN BURROUGHS of Cleveland was recently selected as the U.S. Beat Poet Laureate and previously served for two years as Ohio's Beat Poet Laureate. He is the author of Rattle & Numb: Selected and New Poems, 1992-2019 [2019, Venetian Spider Press], The Eater of the Absurd [2012, NightBallet Press] and more than a dozen chapbooks including, most recently, You Can’t Trust It to Remain [2022, Between Shadows Press]. John has curated several regular reading series in the Greater Cleveland area and currently moderates the northeast Ohio literary calendar at clevelandpoetry.com. In various past lives, John won the first poetry slam he ever competed in, served as playwright-in-residence for the Ministry of Theatre at Marion Correctional Institution, wrote a blog ranked #1 on MySpace and co-founded with Dianne Borsenik the infamous Lix and Kix Poetry Extravaganza and annual Snoetry: A Winter Wordfest. John has edited several poetry anthologies and since 2008 has served as the founding editor of Crisis Chronicles Press, publishing 118 titles (so far) by vital independent voices from across the United States and beyond. Find him at crisischronicles.com. 

​Word of Mouth was founded in 2014 by poets Mark Flanigan and Jim Palmarini, inspired by the late poet and co-conspirator Aralee Strange. Word of Mouth asks poets of all persuasion to show up, mouth off, and listen.

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Let’s Not and Say We Did

Coming from Kerouac’s grave
and approaching the New
Hampshire coast I see a sign
for Seabrook and imagine
it says Seabroke
Recall Jack’s stone says “He honored life”
See myself in communion like
a wafer snapped in two falling
backward into the cool Atlantic
or a warm glass of the Beat brand
single malt whiskey I picked up
on the road to Portsmouth
Lines blur along with the distinction
between drown and dissolve
Honored
and extinguished

         
​                  * * *


Mark This
 
Doesn’t matter if you laminate me 
punch a hole in the end of me 
create a neck on me 
you can tie a pretty rope around 
 
I don’t care if you stick me 
in Shakespeare 
in Salinger or Dr. Seuss 
leave me in some tedious tome 
you intend to finish at some point 
but never do 
or pick your teeth with me 
drop me thoughtlessly on the floor 
for your puppy to chew 
 
I'm the son  
and heir  
of tall trees who 
though often abused and misused 
have gladly given their hearts and bark 
for the sake of warm homes and art 
 
I'm much more 
than a bookmark