Support Tupelo's 30/30 Project!

Tupelo Press has selected me for the 30/30 Project to increase awareness and interest in contemporary poetry. For 30 days this April, I will complete a poetry marathon, writing 30 poems in 30 days. I am thrilled to share them with you.

These poems will be available exclusively on Tupelo's website for the duration of the challenge. I invite you to read them daily as I write them. You'll have the opportunity to experience poetry in progress, rugged and unrefined.

Take this journey with me, and in the process, help me support an independent, non-profit press dedicated to keeping diverse voices in poetry--and in a time when DEI is being dismantled, preserving these voices is imperative. Like many small presses, Tupelo depends on your generosity to bring unique and exciting poems to the world. For the month of April, I am honored to share mine through this incredible project!

Just a small donation will go a long way in helping me meet my goal for Tupelo Press. Thank you for your support!

Day 24 / Poem 24

Goujon Caille, Couyon

I do not remember
the first fish I caught

but I know it happened
with a push-button pole,

the hard plastic grip
too rough and wide

for hands small
as mine were,

each cast unskilled
and flung wild,

knotting birds’ nest
on the last eye loop;

I remember my father
cursing at me in Cajun,

French words hurled further
than my understanding,

but the tone said I did
a grievous wrong,

the English reminding me
what a stupid child I was;

I do not remember
the fish that died

for my dinner that night,
but I think I ought to

To see further poems and read the work of the other incredible April poets, check out the link below.

https://www.tupelopress.org/the-april-2025-30-30-page/