Bruce Dethlefsen
CONTACT:
422 Lawrence Street,
Westfield, WI 53964
poetdethlefsen@gmail.com
BIO:
Bruce Dethlefsen was born in Kansas City. He is the author of two poetry chapbooks, A Decent Reed and Something Near the Dance Floor (which won a Posner Honorable Mention award). His latest full-length book of poems, Breather, won a 2010 Wisconsin Library Association Outstanding Achievement in Poetry award.
Bruce was the Wisconsin Poet Laureate for 2011–2012. He served as secretary of the Wisconsin Fellowship of Poets for six years. He recorded original music on Cathryn Cofell's poetry CD, Lip, with his two-man group, Obvious Dog. He is a retired educator and public library director and lives in Westfield, Wisconsin.
PUBLICATIONS:
Breather, Fireweed Press, 2009; $15.00
Available from Bruce Dethlefsen, 422 Lawrence Street, Westfield, WI 53964 (add $2.00 S&H)
Poetry
Suicide Aside
suicide aside try watching birds
regard them as they fly like salt to bread
spice up this crusty world
a giant spider web
their lines of flight
tie up and bind the world
they fly
birds jump up in the air and stay
you try it
flap your arms for all you’re worth
no way you’re stuck
they’re free to leave the world
the colors
lemon zest and lime and berry
sugar coffee cream
and all the rest
sublime delicious flavors how
our eyes drink in the world
and listen to them sing
the wind becomes a thing alive
with music whistles squawks and chirps
a melody of world
so tell me why you thought you’d rather die
check out pluck all the feathers
close the lights
alright don’t tell me
but please me
stick around a while
with me to watch the birds
see how they swirl and turn the world
White Stallions
the children of the street
must see themselves
in the greasy puddles of the forenoon
in the sundown storefront windows
in the luster of the shoes they shine
must see themselves
in the reflection of a customer’s sunglasses
in the tears of the old women
in the shadow of the bus
the children of the street
must see themselves
flying purple kites on sunny beaches
dining with the family after church
riding white stallions
the children of the street
must see themselves