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The poem “May Memorial” by Cynthia Erlandson read by the poet herself at the Society of Classical Poets online Poetry Symposium on June 28, 2025:
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The poem “Three Cascading Endings on Fallen Civilizations” by Cynthia Erlandson read by the poet herself at the Society of Classical Poets online Poetry Symposium on June 28, 2025:
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Videos created by Andrew Benson Brown.
Brian, your poem is a superb and stark meditation on civilizational decay. It is powerful, morally crucial, and executed with…
There were many reasons for regret over this particular fly, Margaret. It had been buzzing around me in my office…
Coincidentally, I recently wrote a 1200-word story from the POV of planet Earth, warning us that the 6th Great Extinction…
A workmanlike journey home poem, whether literal or metaphorical, or a mix of both, with imagery that made me shiver…
Thanks, Paul, glad you liked my aromatic but smokeless poems. I've heard that Arab men like the very expensive oudh…
The “May Memorial” video contributes beautifully to the pathos of the poem as Cynthia reads it. There is a welcome variation in effect to the pairing of these poems, as compared to “Civilizations” being first featured when the pair was originally presented to the Society. As I said then, the two themes are interrelated. Andrew’s choice of music, and the choice to allow the music in both videos to extend noticeably beyond the texts, is thought provoking.
Thank you, Margaret, and thank you, Andrew! Your choices of images here, as well as the music, are lovely and poignant.
I tried posting before, Cynthia, but my comment went astray. I enjoyed both and was particularly enamoured by your take on Ozymandias.
Oh, and what a fine reading voice you have.
Thank you, Paul. I’ve always been fascinated by Ozymandius. Your comment about my reading voice is encouraging; I’d never thought of myself as having a particularly special voice.
A beautiful poem, a beautiful production with excellent visuals, and a beautiful reading – what more could I ask for? Thank you!
Thank you, Susan!
Thank you, Susan; and I agree that Andrew has done a marvelous job with the visuals!
Andrew, I am really overwhelmed by the amazing job you’ve done with these videos. The musical selection for “Falling Civilizations” is perfect; and you’ve clearly spent a lot of time and thought on the images you’ve used, which are profoundly appropriate. I particularly loved the “beast” and its tracks. Thank you so much!
Hey thanks! The Falling Civilizations piece was perfect to end the symposium, although it was accidentally the last one read. I put more time in that one than others relative to its length, although halfway through I realized I could have done a better job at visually drawing attention to the fact that the last word of each line rhymes with the first word on the next line, a brilliant detail that I didn’t notice the first time around.