👣 Tuesday morning Robert Frost musings

Rick Telander's love for poetry and sports. [READER]( The Daily Reader January 23, 2024 To prepare for my [podcast with Rick Telander]( I got out my old poetry book from freshman year of college. I’m sure you’re wondering why I’d reread a poetry book before talking with Rick. I’ll explain. Yes, Rick’s one of Chicago’s greatest sportswriters. But he’s also a lifelong lover of poetry who, at the ripe old age of whatever, decided to put together [Sweet Dreams]( a wonderful collection of his poems. So for our latest conversation, we were talking poetry—not sports. Though, knowing me and Rick, we can’t talk for long without some tangent or two on basketball, football, [boxing]( or whatever. Rick loves poetry so much that he does impulsive things with it, like tearing out a copy of a poem he read in the New Yorker and hanging it in his house. Like he did with “Man Running,” a poem by Richard Wilbur that ran in [the magazine in 2002](. He texted me a photo of that poem, fading with age and what looks like a coffee stain or two. Obviously, there's something about “Man Running” that reaches Rick. And so he keeps it around just in case he needs it. I can relate. I’m the same way with that aforementioned freshman year poetry collection, which was put together by Louis Simpson (who was himself a helluva poet). Simpson included a fabulous glossary of poetic terms, running from “allegory” to “zeugma”. And a chronologically-arranged collection of poems that goes from Chaucer to Nikki Giovanni, who was all of 30 when the collection came out. I’ve had that book for over 50 years. It’s tattered and torn, pages almost falling out. I’ve carried it to every place I’ve lived. Hundreds of times down through the years I’ve taken it down from the shelf to read and reread some old poems. Ironically, I’m a literalist by nature. Understanding a deeper metaphorical meaning that's concealed from the obvious doesn’t come easy to me. But when that meaning arrives? I’ll give you an example . . . In that freshman year poetry class, we were reading—what else?—“Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening” by Robert Frost. And I’m like, “What’s going on here? What’s the big deal about pausing to look at falling snow? Why does Frost repeat that final line, ‘And miles to go before I sleep’?” And then it hit me. Sleep has two meanings. The literal and the figurative. Death. Man, it was like the heavens opened up and I heard that oh-oh-oh-oh chorus from the [Coldplay song]( “Viva La Vida”. Okay, just for all you other literalists out there—I didn’t literally hear the song. Coldplay wasn’t even around in 1973. But you get the idea. As I said, my old poetry book is falling apart. I should throw it out. But, like Rick with “Man Running,” I just can’t bring myself to do it. Now, here’s a super morbid thought . . . At some time, when I am no longer around, someone will be going through my possessions. They’ll have to decide what the hell to do with that beat-up old book of poetry. Just as someone will have to decide what to do with Rick’s taped-together copy of “Man Running.” Yes, a morbid thought indeed. I’ll let it pass. To paraphrase the great Mr. Frost . . . We’ve got miles to go before we sleep, Miles to go before we sleep. 🎙Listen to [The Ben Joravsky Show]( 🎙 [Forty Million Dollar Slaves]( William C. Rhoden’s classic book about Black athletes in America. Still relevant after all these years. Deanna Isaacs on [Claudine Gay]( “[Heaven’s Wait]( by Ben Joravsky (1991) on the making of Rick Telander’s book Heaven is a Playground into a movie [Best of the Ben J. Show]( Alderperson [Jeanette Taylor]( on the media and other things WBEZ data projects editor [Alden Loury]( on his trip to the Grand Canyon and other things Sun-Times editorial board member and columnist [Rummana Hussain]( on Nikki Haley’s trick bag and other things [RICJ Welcomes Three New Members to its Board of Directors]( Monique Brinkman-Hill, Juliette Buford, and Jake Mikva begin their terms this month. by [Chicago Reader]( | [Read here]( → [Shariba Rivers]( The Reinventor Shariba Rivers has been a reliable and solid presence in Chicago theater for more than a decade, particularly on storefront stages. by [Kerry Reid]( | [Read here]( → [Anthony Tamez-Pochel]( The Land-Steward Councilman Anthony Tamez-Pochel, 24, is an Indigenous and Black community organizer and a 17th Police District Council representative. by [Shawn Mulcahy]( | [Read here]( → [Armand Hammer and Quelle Chris join forces for a hip-hop doubleheader]( by [Cristalle Bowen]( | [Read here]( → [The Cactus Blossoms dust off the country tradition of uncanny brother duets]( by [Noah Berlatsky]( | [Read here]( → Introducing The Sit Down hosted by Shawnee Dez! With new episodes dropping twice a month, host Shawnee Dez will have engaging conversations with the individuals who embody community, and help make this such a dynamic place to call home. [LISTEN TO EPISODE ONE FEAT. NICO SEGAL 🎺]( [Issue of Jan 11 – 24, 2024 Vol. 53, No. 7]( [VIEW/DOWNLOAD ISSUE [PDF]]( [View this e-mail as a web page]( [@chicago_reader]( [/chicagoreader]( [@chicago_reader]( [Chicago Reader on LinkedIn]( [/chicagoreader]( [chicagoreader.com]( [Forward this e-mail to a friend](. Want to change how you receive these e-mails? You can [update your preferences]( or [unsubscribe from this list](. Copyright © 2024 Chicago Reader, All rights reserved. Our mailing address is: Chicago Reader, 2930 S. Michigan Ave., Suite 102, Chicago, IL 60616