Maureen Sherbondy's Blog
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Oct.06.2010
Camp
220 words
A child is homesick. On the fifth day, he sneaks out of his cabin and wanders through the woods, beyond the picnic tables and the gazebo. When he reaches the stable of canoes, he stops; then climbs inside the closest one. He drifts away from the ten cabins, from the counselors, and...
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Sep.11.2010
That Day
1. Today
The sun is still out
as if nothing has happened,
an ordinary September day,
leaves remain intact on so many green trees
but the leaves appear black, burned, decayed
and fallen in another city.
Everything is different now.
The day is clear, so clear
every pair of eyes can...
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May.19.2010
Over the last month I have read 12 books, written three essays, and had very little time to do much of anything else. Few poems have been written, no stories at all. Why? I'm starting graduate school on Sunday. At 45. It's hard to believe I am going to be a student again. The last time I started...
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Mar.18.2010
My father passed away two weeks ago. Shock. That's what I felt. I could not wrap my head around death, around the concept of my father not existing anymore. I walked around not knowing what day it was, or where I was supposed to be. Doctor's appointment? Lunch with a friend? Who could remember? Who...
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Feb.02.2010
At an early age I set four goals for myself: (1) earn a college degree, (2) marry, (3) have three children (yes, three, I have always been very decisive) prior to thirty, and (4) publish a book.
By twenty-nine I had checked the first three items off my life’s to-do list. Item four eluded me. Get a...
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Jan.20.2010
My favorite contemporary short story is "The Tumblers" from Nathan Englander's amazing collection FOR THE RELIEF OF UNBEARABLE URGES. To avoid ending up at the death camps, a group of Orthodox Jews sneaks on a train, pretending to be circus acrobats. During the train ride, these men and...
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Jan.13.2010
My favorite poem. This is a tough one. I have sentimental favorites, specific author favorites, and other subcategories. "The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock" is my top choice. As a teenager, I read this one over and over again. Each time I read it I discovered new meaning. Lovely music...
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Dec.11.2009
What a great year it's been! My first short story collection was published and I've had many readings. As if that wasn't enough--I got to be interviewed on NPR's The State of Things this week. It's a strange thing being on the radio. Usually when I get ready for a reading, the first thing I ask...
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Nov.22.2009
I am a planner and a goal setter. I have always believed that if you make a list of things you want to achieve, they will eventually happen. Well, maybe not all of them, but some of them. About ten years ago my goal list for writing contained these items: 1. Get more poetry published 2. Start...
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Nov.06.2009
What We Don’t Get
My fantasy goes something like this: I enter a poetry contest and win first prize. The famous Duke professor/ poet or the North Carolina Poet Laureate phones me personally to inform me of the good news. He says I wish I had written it myself! I call every person I...
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Oct.30.2009
I've been getting my poetry published for 16 years now. After publishing more than one hundred poems in literary journals I have received: contributor copies, a check for 7$, a check for 88$, prize money of 100$, 50$, and 25$. When I think of the cost of sending my work out (ink, paper, postage,...
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Oct.28.2009
This is a Halloween story that originally appeared in moonShine Review. It was also reprinted in the Chapel Hill News.
Web Invasion
Webs first took up residence inside the yard, coating bushes and grass in an autumnal veil. The spiders weren’t visible in daylight. They worked at night....
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About Maureen
Maureen Sherbondy grew up in Metuchen, New Jersey, and now resides in Raleigh, North Carolina, with her husband and three sons. Her poems have appeared in numerous publications, including European Judaism, Calyx, Feminist Studies, 13th Moon, Cairn,...
Connections
Causes Maureen Sherbondy Supports
North Carolina Writers' Network, Temple Beth Or, North Carolina Poetry Society