25 Comments

Hi 26th Ave, This is the only way I know to reach you. As you probably know, I am going to publish a book and I am being told by my wife what a good idea it would be to put some of your comments either on the back cover of the book or inside the book. Not sure which or we may do both.

l would like to know if I can use some or all of your comments that you posted on Substack? Can I edit them, you know, shrink them down to the good stuff?

Do you want your name included? If you do, how would you like it to be written? Wes

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Loved your question: “what sort of start it gives to your day to see your face broken into segments?”

Hilarious! 🤣

“”Holding together how many broken reflections”

Will it disclose who she truly is?

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It will disclose her brave self, holding together so many segments of who she is and wants to be!

Love you, sister Looocinda. Thank you for reading and commenting so faithfully.

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Simply loved it!

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I'm so glad, Kavitha! Thank you for letting me know, and first of all for reading.

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Sometimes I love your commentary on the poem even better than the poem, and this is one of those cases!

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Thanks for reading, Rose!

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I do all the things you talk about here, but not on the run! I have a close friend who will apply her makeup in the car on the way to work, a skill I have never been able to master.

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It's a wondrous lot to do, even sitting/standing still! I hope it brings you joy and makes you feel cared-for, Donna. Thank you as always for stopping by.

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You see the most thought-provoking things that plunge you deep into inspiration just by people watching.

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For a fact! Thank you for reading and commenting, Daniel.

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Paraphrasing the TV astronomy guys. Keep looking.

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Been doing so for years, Malcolm, with no signs of stopping! Thank you for being here to read and comment.

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My pleasure.

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and if you don't poke your eye out with the wand when the bus lurches, you'll have a line of mascara running across your face.

Auntie B

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So many risks, but those brave women keep at it!

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I love this one!

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I'm so glad, Lucy! Thanks for reading.

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Moving and evocative words today. Thank you. These lines especially: "Cracks by themselves, I think / are not the curse, it’s only when broken pieces / scatter that the bad sets in..." and your concluding reminder of how we can be beautiful and brave in so many different ways. Just lovely.

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Thank you, Elizabeth!

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I like that women’s faces were “cracked but splendidly whole”.

It’s got that survivor vibe that rises above petty things. My feeling is that if the crack is not your fault, you don’t get the ill luck.

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I got the same sense of this as well but I couldn't put it so succinctly like you did.

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I'm glad you could feel the "rise above" vibe, Weston. And I hope you're right about the luck! Thanks for reading.

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This poem made me realize my entire commute life has been solo, on a bicycle…I’ve missed out on public transit life. Enjoyed the glimpse, and makes me think about the commute life I could describe of my fellow cyclists, especially the parents with singing kids on the back.

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Oh yes, you have a whole different set of fellow passengers (and their stories) from your bike! I love the singing kids riding behind their parents. Thank you for reading, Petrina, and for sharing your stories.

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