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PODCAST

The Slowdown: Poetry & Reflection Daily

Eliana Benavides

Poet Major Jackson is your guide on the pathways to feel and understand our common journey – through poetry. In sharing poems, we take a moment to pause and acknowledge the world’s magnitude, and how poets illuminate that mystery. Join The Slowdown for a poem and a moment of reflection in one short episode, every weekday. Produced by APM Studios in partnership with The Poetry Foundation and supported in part by the National Endowment for the Arts. The Slowdown is your daily poetry ritual. Make us a

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All Episodes

7:27

1335: [encore] Bonfire Opera by Danusha Laméris

The Slowdown: Poetry & Reflection Daily ·

2026/10/06

Today’s poem is Bonfire Opera by Danusha Laméris. The Slowdown is your daily poetry ritual. In this encore episode, Maggie writes… “Yes, I have new lines around my eyes and new glints of silver in my hair, but my body continues to surprise me in wonderful ways, too. It brings me a lot of pleasure—maybe even more pleasure than it did when I was in my teens, twenties, and even thirties. Because I appreciate it. And because I am less self-conscious. That is one of the gifts of aging: Becoming more

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11:07

David Duchovny: Dream Song 1 by John Berryman...

The Slowdown: Poetry & Reflection Daily ·

2026/10/02

Today’s poem is Dream Song 1 by John Berryman, with special guest David Duchovny. You know him from his breakout role as Fox Mulder on The X-Files, as well as appearances on other hit series like Californication and Twin Peaks. Here’s an extended conversation with David that we hope you enjoy.The Slowdown is your daily poetry ritual. In this episode, David shares… “I remember when I first read "Dream Song 1" by John Berryman in high school. I think I understood that I was coming out of the Eden of

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8:13

David Duchovny: Dream Song 1 by John Berryman

The Slowdown: Poetry & Reflection Daily ·

2026/10/01

Today’s poem is Dream Song 1 by John Berryman, with special guest David Duchovny. You know him from his breakout role as Fox Mulder on The X-Files, as well as appearances on other hit series like Californication and Twin Peaks. The Slowdown is your daily poetry ritual. In this episode, David shares… “Every day is a loss. We can focus on love and focus on positives, but the fact is we're living in time, and things are being stripped away from us constantly. And it can lead to either depression or to

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6:53

1333: [encore] Crossing the Line by E. Ethelbert Miller

The Slowdown: Poetry & Reflection Daily ·

2026/09/30

Today’s poem is Crossing the Line by E. Ethelbert Miller. The Slowdown is your daily poetry ritual. In this episode, Maggie writes… “Today’s poem reads to me like a love poem, a tribute, to a long friendship. It reminds me that part of how we know ourselves is through the people who know us best, and who have loved us through our changes.”This show is supported by gifts from listeners. Support The Slowdown with a donation today. Slowdownshow.org/donate

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8:23

1430: [encore] Earth Shovel by Dan Albergotti

The Slowdown: Poetry & Reflection Daily ·

2026/09/29

Today’s poem is Earth Shovel by Dan Albergotti. The Slowdown is your daily poetry ritual. In this episode, Maggie writes… “Today’s poem, which looks at the fragility of our planet, begins with two epigraphs. One is from American astronomer Carl Sagan, from his book Pale Blue Dot. The other is the famous line from politician Michael Steele.” This show is supported by gifts from listeners. Support The Slowdown with a donation today. Slowdownshow.org/donate

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8:27

[encore] 1336: I Find Myself Defending Pigeons by...

The Slowdown: Poetry & Reflection Daily ·

2026/09/18

Today’s poem is I Find Myself Defending Pigeons by Keith S. Wilson. This episode was originally released on August 22, 2025. The Slowdown is your daily poetry ritual. In this episode, Maggie writes… “One thing I love about poems is how they give us the opportunity to take our time, to dial in, to look and listen closely. Not everything screams to be noticed. Some things barely whisper! Or they might just squawk or coo now and then.” This show is supported by gifts from listeners. Support The

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7:32

[encore] 1520: The New City by Hieu Minh Nguyen

The Slowdown: Poetry & Reflection Daily ·

2026/09/16

Today’s poem is The New City by Hieu Minh Nguyen. This episode was originally released on May 21, 2026.The Slowdown is your daily poetry ritual. In this episode, Maggie writes… “There’s a very specific pleasure in doing things alone. Going to the movies by yourself, sitting in the dark with your own drink and popcorn or candy that you don’t have to share, and sitting anywhere you want in the theatre without asking a companion where they want to sit. Or having a meal on your own, party of one, just

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7:43

[encore] 1412: Ledge (ars poetica) (love poem) (true...

The Slowdown: Poetry & Reflection Daily ·

2026/09/15

Today’s poem is Ledge (ars poetica) (love poem) (true story) by Amorak Huey. This episode was originally released on December 15, 2025. The Slowdown is your daily poetry ritual. In this episode, Maggie writes… “Today’s poem calls itself an ars poetica, a love poem, and a true story. That’s a lot of work for one poem to do — a lot of layers of meaning! But this poet does speak to the precarity of it all: writing, and loving, and living.” This show is supported by gifts from listeners. Support The

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8:00

[encore] 1491: The Plum You're Going to Eat Next...

The Slowdown: Poetry & Reflection Daily ·

2026/09/11

Today’s poem is The Plum You're Going to Eat Next Summer by Gayle Brandeis. This episode was originally released on April 10, 2026. The Slowdown is your daily poetry ritual. In this episode, Maggie writes… “I know optimism can be a tough sell when there’s so much suffering, so much difficulty, in the world. But this brokenness is exactly why we need more poems, more paintings, more films, more plays. More art. To make things that don’t exist yet — and don’t need to exist, because that is the very

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7:38

[encore] 1362: For You Who Have Loved Old Dogs by...

The Slowdown: Poetry & Reflection Daily ·

2026/09/08

Today’s poem is For You Who Have Loved Old Dogs by Silas House. This episode was originally released on September 29, 2025.The Slowdown is your daily poetry ritual. In this episode, Maggie writes… “My Boston terrier, Phoebe, is about to turn eleven, so if she were a human, she’d be a 77 year old woman. If Phoebe were one of the Golden Girls, she’d probably be Rose: quirky, loyal, a little dim-witted. We adopted her from a Boston terrier rescue organization when she was one and a half, in the spring

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7:02

[encore] 1373: Protection Spell Jar by Cynthia Marie...

The Slowdown: Poetry & Reflection Daily ·

2026/09/07

Today’s poem is Protection Spell Jar by Cynthia Marie Hoffman. This episode was originally released on October 14, 2025.The Slowdown is your daily poetry ritual. In this encore episode, Maggie writes… “Today’s poem is from a collection of prose poems that chronicles a woman’s journey through obsessive-compulsive disorder, from childhood into adulthood. I admire the way we’re invited into the speaker’s consciousness, to see her mind at work.” This show is supported by gifts from listeners. Support

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7:09

1586: WHITMAN: by Larry Levis

The Slowdown: Poetry & Reflection Daily ·

2026/09/04

Today’s poem is WHITMAN: by Larry Levis.The Slowdown is your daily poetry ritual. In this episode, guest host Myka Kielbon writes… “Every year, the Association of Writers and Writing Programs holds a conference in a different American city. A few years ago, when the literary industry descended on Kansas City, a poet I know posted on Instagram that he wanted to go to Charlie Parker’s grave. The pilgrimage was based on a Larry Levis poem. I threw my hat in the ring to join him.” This show is supported

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8:00

1585: Dialogue on Violence by Jayne Cortez

The Slowdown: Poetry & Reflection Daily ·

2026/09/03

Today’s poem is Dialogue on Violence by Jayne Cortez.The Slowdown is your daily poetry ritual. In this episode, guest host Myka Kielbon writes… “If you’re listening to this episode first thing in the morning or as you go to sleep, looking for something easeful, I should apologize. Today’s poem is not that. It is a grim litany. But I think by naming our harsh reality, it holds out hope for a different world. It will be read to you in just one voice, my voice, but the title calls it a dialogue. I want

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6:23

1582: Visitor's Center by T Bambrick

The Slowdown: Poetry & Reflection Daily ·

2026/08/31

Today’s poem is Visitor's Center by T Bambrick.The Slowdown is your daily poetry ritual. In this episode, guest host Myka Kielbon writes… “Today’s poem takes me back to a specificity of a Washington State public school education: learning the intricacies of salmon, sturgeon, dams, ecology, and electricity. What I didn’t see then, that I see now, is the tension between control and appreciation of the natural world. That our modern lives rely on a system built by lionizing the will of man. The

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7:15

1578: Lover of Cars by Olivia Sokolowski

The Slowdown: Poetry & Reflection Daily ·

2026/08/25

Today’s poem is Lover of Cars by Olivia Sokolowski. The Slowdown is your daily poetry ritual. In this episode, guest host Myka Kielbon writes… “I keep today’s poem taped on my wall. I thought it spoke to me because it connects my father’s love of cars to my own love of poetry. But I realized, in writing this, that what it does on a craft level is what knocks me off my feet every time.” This show is supported by gifts from listeners. Support The Slowdown with a donation today.

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6:11

1577: Portrait of the Speaker Riding a Greyhound Bus...

The Slowdown: Poetry & Reflection Daily ·

2026/08/24

Today’s poem is Portrait of the Speaker Riding a Greyhound Bus by Eduardo Martinez-Leyva. The Slowdown is your daily poetry ritual. In this episode, guest host Myka Kielbon writes… “In the seemingly endless spring of 2020, my roommate and I briefly decamped Los Angeles and holed up with her family in Southern Oregon. The town was already quiet during the best of times; that spring, it was even quieter. We plugged away at our desk jobs that we’d taken with us. We knew we were lucky, but still the

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7:22

[encore] 1438: The Long Now by Robin Beth Schaer

The Slowdown: Poetry & Reflection Daily ·

2026/08/20

The Slowdown is taking a break. We’ll be back soon with new episodes. This encore episode was originally released on January 20, 2026.Today’s poem is The Long Now by Robin Beth Schaer.The Slowdown is your daily poetry ritual. In this episode, Maggie writes… “Today’s poem addresses a child—a child full of questions about the world. It reminds me that as parents, we don’t need to have the answers, and we don’t need to pretend to have them. Instead we can listen, stay open, and honor our kids’

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7:23

[encore] 1340: From the Sky by Sara Abou Rashed

The Slowdown: Poetry & Reflection Daily ·

2026/08/18

The Slowdown is taking a break. We’ll be back soon with new episodes. This encore episode was originally released on August 28, 2025.Today’s poem is From the Sky by Sara Abou Rashed. The Slowdown is your daily poetry ritual. In this episode, Maggie writes… “When I think about ways to foster empathy, perspective, and care, one of those ways is poetry. I know poetry can’t stop bombs from falling, and it can’t feed the starving, and it can’t evacuate people to safety. I know this. But poetry can change

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7:06

[encore] 1464: Somewhere Else by Adam J. Gellings

The Slowdown: Poetry & Reflection Daily ·

2026/08/17

The Slowdown is taking a break. We’ll be back soon with new episodes. This encore episode was originally released on February 25, 2026.Today’s poem is Somewhere Else by Adam J. Gellings. The Slowdown is your daily poetry ritual. In this episode, Maggie writes… “I was born at 4:30 in the afternoon on a cold Sunday in February. All of this is either useless information — time of day, day of the week, month of the year — or it’s part of our own myth-making.” Celebrate the power of poems with a gift to

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6:53

[encore] 1387: Different Kinds of Sadness by Jenny...

The Slowdown: Poetry & Reflection Daily ·

2026/08/11

The Slowdown is taking a break. We’ll be back soon with new episodes. Today’s encore episode was originally released on November 3, 2025.Today’s poem is Different Kinds of Sadness by Jenny Molberg.The Slowdown is your daily poetry ritual. In this episode, Maggie writes… “When I lost my joy, my generous friends were there. It can be so hard to accept help from others, especially if you pride yourself on being self-sufficient, but I took them up on their offers of meals, and company, and advice. And

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