Day 6, Poet 6: Christine Hemp

The Tune of It
A response to Hailey Leithauser’s poem
 “Short, Sweet” for 32 Poems Magazine
 
Short, Sweet 

                       slips

                            down the sheet

                                          of white

                             space

like notes                             rising 
                dropping then 
        
sounds abound    repeat

                                        trippingly

seeingly

              upon the ear

                       slant  rhyme cambering

the iamb         (lifting)    into

                            slim-sweet fleetingness

                                                       (yes the tune of it)
 

​
Previously published in 32 Poems, with accompanying Celtic flute by Christine Hemp. 


Christine Hemp has read her poems and essays on NPR’s Morning Edition, and her awards include a Washington State Artist Trust Fellowship for Literature. A poem of hers traveled over 1.5 billion miles on a NASA mission to monitor the birth of stars. She is author of “That Fall.” Hemp also plays Celtic and jazz flute, often weaving poetry into her performances. A former art critic, she is drawn to writing poems from paintings and sculpture; one was featured recently at a Seattle gallery which paired writers with single pieces of art. Hemp teaches poetry and nonfiction at the University of Iowa Summer Writing Festival. She lives with her husband and horses in Port Townsend, Washington.