Poetry Events at Blue Met

We have several poetry events at this year`s Festival and we love nothing more than to pack them with both poetry connoisseurs and those who perhaps who are just curious to see what local poets are doing...

I posted about it before, but Poets at Night happens on Friday, April 29th night at 6pm. Anyone who was at Poetry Pandemonium last night at Sparrow (packed house, impressive!) will be happy to hear that Gabe Foreman is reading again at our Blue Met event. In addition, we have Quebec poet Aurian Haller, Swiss/Italian poet Oliver Scharpf, Latvian Edvins Raups, and American Andrea Moore. Tickets still available for this one. Get them here.

On Wednesday evening, we have an interesting line up of two Arab-Canadian poets, John Asfour and Ehab Lotayef. Asfour, originally from Lebanon, writes charming little gems that challenge all our assumptions about how we experience (and how we should experience) poetry. Blinded as a youth by a stray missile in his native Lebanon, Asfour explores senses in his new work, Blindfold, and gets at the very heart of what it means to write and read poetry.


Silver Threads

He recalls
the absence of sound, the impossible silence
the disappearance of light.

He is only aware of
the movement of his
mother's hand inside
her purse, looking

for her handkerchief.
He recalls her
warning not to play
with unknown objects
the type that explode on impact. Later,

he lies in the dark remembering
how she pointed out
the silver threads of morning light
just the day before
and he sparkles
with guilt.

Ehab Lotayef

Lotayef's most recent work To Love a Palestinian Woman explores the delicate humanity that makes up our individual experience: that of a migrant, that of a poet, that of a traveler or activist. With echoes of Neruda, Aldous Huxley and Ginsberg, this collection shows a breadth of intellectual curiosity moderated by a deep emotional longing for justice.

Today I shall write the happiest lines:
the sun is up early, calling me
birds sing on every tree
imprisoned in your love
I'm free.

...

Today I shall write the wisest lines:
I'll explain why there is injustice on earth
why there is disease
why some are poor while others have too much
why I am in love with you.

Moderated by UQAM's Rachad Antonius, this event on Wednesday, April 27th at 5pm will present some accessible and lovely work by two important Canadian poets. Get tickets here.