Oliver de la Paz is the author of three collections of poetry, Names Above Houses, Furious Lullaby, and Requiem for the Orchard. He is also the co-editor of A Face to Meet the Faces: An Anthology of Contemporary Persona Poetry. A co-chair for the advisory board of Kundiman.org, he teaches creative writing at Western Washington University.
Oliver de la Paz
Oliver de la Paz: Dear Empire [these are your jellyfish]
Dear Empire, These are your jellyfish. They are the artist’s obsession. The way their forms are taken by tides. Pulled towards the shore or towards some unknowing place. Our beaches are cursed by thousands of these little ghosts. Yet she fills her canvases with their clear and brilliant orbs. Occasional tendrils seem to slide […]
Oliver de la Paz: Dear Empire [ these are your horses]
Dear Empire, These are your horses. They hurt to watch, scarring the prairie as they do. The way they draw north or heed your call and cross the river, even when it is far too high. See their heads jut just above the water? How quick the small ones drown. How tame they are […]
Oliver de la Paz: My Dearest Conflict
My Dearest Conflict, l Urged, I chose to celebrate the body with rocks and stilettos. I’ve hollowed the tips of my bullets. I’ve poisoned the mouthwash. Look at these hands—at the heart, they’re contemplating God. God, they think, can drop a branch without warning. Spare me your sympathy, dearest. Spare me the discretion of an […]