“Makato Wokiksuye” Dakota Writers Speak to Presence
December 19, 2015
On the 153rd anniversary of the largest mass execution in the history of the United States, the hanging of thirty-eight Dakota men in Mankato for their role in the U.S. Dakota War, contemporary Dakota writers speak to Presence.
Christmas Unplugged
December 17, 2015
Jenna already has her lights up, of course. I would have mine up, too, except ever since Sam fell into the Grand Canyon, I have been a little behind on things.
Dancing at the Crossroads
December 15, 2015
Saint Paul is my chosen home, the place where I feel most deeply that I belong. Now. It has not always been so.
TWISP | This Week In Saint Paul: Monday, December 14th – Sunday, December 20th, 2015
December 13, 2015
In Saint Paul, our sisters and brothers invest sweat and tears in freedoms, artistic and otherwise. Sometimes we offer a welcome hat, and other times we try our best to offer refuge against the protestations of neighbors who have forgotten how and why their great grandparents came here.
Letter to the Lady Who Fell
December 11, 2015
I'm sorry you fell Tuesday night, a little after 8 p.m. I hope you're okay. Your husband looked mighty upset when you fell.
TWISP | This Week In Saint Paul: Monday, December 7th – Sunday, December 13th, 2015
December 6, 2015
Almost a month late, a thin version of the winter blanket has come to the landscape. Shifting landscapes meet changing climates that days later gave me the opportunity to be outside in a strange December balm.
Our Lady of Guadalupe
December 6, 2015
Our Lady of Guadalupe,
leaning in the mercado window,
make intercession for the West Side.
Mystical rose of yellow, red, and blue,
protect those who journey through
the corners of George, State, and Chavez streets —
New Tepeyac, District del Sol.
The Invitation
December 4, 2015
Tonight she asks you to sleep
with her. both of you in the bed
with siderails, a plastic mattress pad
below.
TWISP | This Week In Saint Paul: Monday, November 30th – Sunday, December 6th, 2015
November 29, 2015
Counting the brave faces walking the globe this week makes both the season and the daily walk seem pale. While the wanna-be rulers ask us to peer into their kaleidoscope of logic, the most important things we see and hear are coming from the crystal clear honesty of artists confronting the issues of the day head-on.
TWISP | This Week In Saint Paul: Monday, November 23rd – Sunday, November 29th, 2015
November 22, 2015
Oh, hear November, we have missed you, and now you are here. Not that we really missed you, but Thanksgiving is coming and we can’t have it without you.
TWISP | This Week In Saint Paul: Monday, November 16th – Sunday, November 22nd, 2015
November 15, 2015
As the real world continues to creep closer than nostalgic comfort, one might engage in the tendency to hide. We can pretend that the lines drawn on our geographies will keep us safe and sane, but our hearts have always been more porous than walls and fences. We can hide, or we can engage and shake the truths out of the confusion. Art helps.
TWISP | This Week In Saint Paul: Monday, November 9th – Sunday, November 15th, 2015
November 8, 2015
This is that hard part of autumn for me, when all the baseball is done and the rain has knocked the leaves off the trees, still with their warm-colored hues, but helpless on the ground, maybe to be raked or swept up or maybe to wait for the snow blanket where they will sleep until it is time for baseball again.