We had the good fortune to be in a workshop with Amanda Johnston in the Spring at the Institute for Poetic Medicine gathering. When she introduced us to the concept of Praise Poetry we were struck by how in honoring the ordinary, witnessing and caring for each other, seeing the good that others do for us created moving poetry and prose. What is right in front of us, the dusk, the people, the bats - are all a reason to move our pencils, pens and keystrokes in praise.
Bat Crossing
One million bats, two million little wings flutter out from under the Congress Street Bridge in the blue-pink ombré of dusk. The photo in the Austin airport captured the moment so perfectly I had to take a pic. In the frantic airport traffic, millions of little feet about to soar, I stop and fumble with my phone— apps, angles, my tiny desire to witness. The man sees me, stops, and waits. A flock of people moves around us. He waits, and for a few seconds, we hover on a tiny cloud of kindness. I get the shot and we float on. Praise the little moments of seeing. Praise the pause and patience we share in the pixelated moments of life.
by Amanda Johnston from Praisesong for the People, retrieved 6/30/26
Invitation: “… we hover on a tiny cloud of kindness.”
A Commons Practice
Community is created every time we make room for another voice.
Every reflection is an invitation to pause, wonder, and connect. If today’s piece stirred something in you, we’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments.
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Amanda Johnston 2024 Texas Poet Laureate
Amanda Johnston is a writer, visual artist, and the 2024 Texas Poet Laureate. Born in East St. Louis, IL, and raised in Austin, TX, she began writing poetry while living in Kentucky. Her writing is published widely, and she has presented at numerous literary conferences and events. She is a 2024 Academy of American Poets Laureate Fellow.
She earned an MFA in Creative Writing from the University of Southern Maine. She is the author of two chapbooks, GUAP and Lock & Key, and the full-length collection Another Way to Say Enter. Her work has appeared in numerous online and print publications, among them, Callaloo, Poetry Magazine, Puerto del Sol, Muzzle, and the anthologies, Furious Flower: Seeding the Future of African American Poetry and Women of Resistance: Poems for a New Feminism. She has received fellowships, grants, and awards from Cave Canem, Hedgebrook, Tasajillo, the Kentucky Foundation for Women, The Watermill Center, and the Academy of American Poets. She is a former Board President of Cave Canem Foundation, a member of the Affrilachian Poets, cofounder of Black Poets Speak Out, and founder of Torch Literary Arts.
We will meet for the Community Table every Monday at 4:30 pm or 8:00 pm (EST) - Go to our calendar at this link for details: https://courageouscommons.com/events/
July Courageous Citizen
Dr. Paul Farmer
For our July Americans Who Tell the Truth feature, we chose Dr. Paul Farmer because he spent his life living into the belief that we have a moral responsibility to accompany those who suffer. He didn’t simply talk about equity. He embodied it. Whether someone lived in a remote village or a place forgotten by the rest of the world, he believed no one should be beyond the reach of care.
https://americanswhotellthetruth.org/portraits/dr-paul-farmer/
This moment in the airport as Amanda Johnston describes it --- captures my attention and heart ---
The man sees me,
stops, and waits. A flock of people
moves around us. He waits, and for
a few seconds, we hover on a tiny
cloud of kindness
This image of hovering "on a tiny cloud of kindness" together reminds me of what is possible when we notice others and decide to offer kindness as this man did.