About this episode
Aimee Nezhukumatathil’s poem “ On Listening to Your Teacher Take Attendance ” offers a way to ground yourself during vulnerable moments. The poet gathers strength from being loved, which helps her in times of displacement. A question to reflect on after you listen: What stories do you hold on to when you're feeling displaced? About the poet: Aimee Nezhukumatathil is a professor of English and creative writing in the MFA program at the University of Mississippi. She also serves as the poetry editor for Orion magazine. Her books include Lucky Fish , At the Drive-In Volcano , Miracle Fruit , and Oceanic . Her upcoming book of illustrated essays is World of Wonders . She is the recipient of a Pushcart Prize and a fellowship from the National Endowment for the Arts. “On Listening to Your Teacher Take Attendance” comes from Aimee Nezhukumatathil’s book Oceanic . Thank you to Copper Canyon Press, who published the book, and to Aimee for letting us use her poem. Read it on onbeing.org . Find the transcript for this episode at onbeing.org . The original music in this episode was composed by Gautam Srikishan . Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.