“I myself am bored / of fig leaves, of shames / I did not choose” – from ‘About Ana’

A poem is not its words, but the ringing it leaves behind.

Bergin's perceptions are sharp, her senses of history, community, and relationships deep and acute, and her technical control over language and form is assured and graceful - Tower Poetry

And my heart, O my soldiers, my veterans, my heart gives you love. - Walt Whitman 'Dirge For Two Veterans'

With walking sick, with curtseys lame, and frighted by the scolding dame, poor Mira once again is seen within the bounds of Goslin-Green. - Mary Leapor 'The Visit'

If death still comes / we'll strike a pose / and hold our breath / until he goes - Kevin Ireland

I suppose what I really like is to set up a system which looks wonderfully secure when you first encounter it on the page, but within the framework there are crazy things which tip the reader off-balance. - Bill Manhire

I suppose as I'm explaining myself to others, I'm quintessentially explaining myself to myself. Gerald Stern