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After two years, two seasons and 443 episodes, Major Jackson is stepping down from the host chair. 


A Farewell to Major Jackson

To find out more about how National Endowment for the Arts grants impact individuals and communities, visit www.arts.gov.


Supported in Part by National Endowment for the Arts

Raising poetry to a more visible and influential position in American culture.


Produced in Partnership With the Poetry Foundation

Announcements

[encore] 496: a brief meditation on breath by Yesenia Montilla

Today's poem is a brief meditation on breath by Yesenia Montilla.


The Slowdown Yesenia Montilla 

Today’s poem is a brief meditation on breath by Yesenia Montilla. 
The Slowdown is currently taking a break. We’ll be back soon with new episodes from a new host. This week, we’re going back into the archive to revisit Tracy K. Smith’s time as host. Today’s episode was originally released on October 19, 2020. In this episode, Tracy writes… “The whole time, I felt all of my senses struggle to decelerate. My heart was like a drum solo. It felt like someone was pounding on my chest. While I was there, I flipped through my mental Rolodex of workday vexation. I ticked off the headlines that, even on a good day, hamper my ability to unwind. Lying there, struggling to relax, egged on by the actual bothers my work-week forces me to wrestle, I understood something. Many people live like this on a regular basis. The peril, the worry, the blood pressure roiling. When you wake up and people doubt you, threaten you, overstep respectful bounds. When leaders utter slurs against you. When every day the deck, already stacked against you, is reshuffled.” 
Celebrate the power of poems with a gift to The Slowdown today. Every donation makes a difference: https://tinyurl.com/rjm4synp

The Slowdown

[encore] 1025: I Am Trying to Love the Whole World by Jenny Browne

Today’s poem is I Am Trying to Love the Whole World by Jenny Browne.


Today’s poem is I Am Trying to Love the Whole World by Jenny Browne. The Slowdown is currently taking a break. We’ll be back soon with new episodes from a new host. This week, we’re revisiting some favorites from Major Jackson’s time as host. Today’s episode was originally released on December 21, 2023. In this episode, Major writes… “If only we viewed observations of the natural world and meditations on birds, mammals, and plant life as equally, critically urgent, we might awaken to the necessity of caretaking of our planet and each other. Birdwatching does not have to be a form of looking away, it can be an antidote for our spirit.” 
Celebrate the power of poems with a gift to The Slowdown today. Every donation makes a difference: https://tinyurl.com/rjm4synp

[encore] 995: Dear—, by DéLana R.A. Dameron

Today’s poem is Dear—, by DéLana R.A. Dameron.


Today’s poem is Dear—, by DéLana R.A. Dameron. The Slowdown is currently taking a break. We’ll be back soon with new episodes from a new host. This week, we’re revisiting some favorites from Major Jackson’s time as host. Today’s episode was originally released on November 9, 2023. In this episode, Major writes… “Today’s poem of rhyming couplets speaks a truth about loneliness; the wish for a sustaining love and companionship motivates us to work through our differences sometimes at the expense of our emotional health.” 
Celebrate the power of poems with a gift to The Slowdown today. Every donation makes a difference: https://tinyurl.com/rjm4synp

The Slowdown

Latest Episode

Recent Episodes

[encore] 496: a brief meditation on breath by Yesenia Montilla

[encore] 1025: I Am Trying to Love the Whole World by Jenny Browne

[encore] 995: Dear—, by DéLana R.A. Dameron

Announcements

A Farewell to Major Jackson

Supported in Part by National Endowment for the Arts

Produced in Partnership With the Poetry Foundation

Other APM Podcasts

Truth Be Told

Ripple

The Splendid Table

The Slowdown

Latest Episode

Recent Episodes

[encore] 496: a brief meditation on breath by Yesenia Montilla

[encore] 1025: I Am Trying to Love the Whole World by Jenny Browne

[encore] 995: Dear—, by DéLana R.A. Dameron

Get a poem handpicked by Major Jackson every weekday. The email includes an abridged version of Major’s introduction.

Announcements

A Farewell to Major Jackson

Supported in Part by National Endowment for the Arts

Produced in Partnership With the Poetry Foundation

Other APM Podcasts

Truth Be Told

Ripple

The Splendid Table