8 Beatitudes*

the first time i heard my favorite band
watching my lily plant open, each flesh-pink flower the size of my hand
the face-flush of a new idea or
my cat stretched long on the hardwood floor
trying on the skirt i made
heartache at the moment it starts to fade
riding a boy's handlebars through the city at night
getting the words just right.

* a state of utmost bliss

I letterpress printed this poem onto a "broadside," or poster. Letterpress printing is when you set metal or wood type on a big old Ben Franklin-style printing press and crank the printed matter out by hand. I took a class to learn how to do this, and then I produced a run of 35 prints of the poem in a metallic green ink I mixed myself. (Okay, my teacher helped me with the mixing.) Each is signed and numbered and, as they’re all printed on lovely art paper, suitable for framing.