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VETERANS OF WAR, VETERANS OF PEACE |
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May 25, 2007
For nearly 15 years Maxine Hong Kingston has led writing-and-meditation workshops for veterans and their families. "The contributors to VETERANS OF WAR, VETERANS OF PEACE — combat veterans, medics, and others who served in war; gang members, drug users, and victims of domestic violence; draft resisters, deserters, and peace activists — are part of this community of writers working together to heal the trauma of war through art."
Sea Salt
by Sandy Scull
After the Vietnam War, I withdrew
to Nantucket: "faraway isle."
Hoping to glimpse the boy
before spirit fled the body.
Thirty-three miles of ocean exiling me
from a homeland offering little embrace.
Me and my dog Christopher. Christ-love
disguised as loyal canine. We combed beaches.
Working for the island newspaper connected me.
Tides soothed with ebb and flow.
A rhythm I could trust. Even eat by.
I fished the last three hours of the east tide.
Buried my toes in the sand, searching
for the texture of littleneck clam.
When water was warm, I sailed out solo.
Stripped then slid into the sound.
Looking up toward the surface light.
Christopher's gaze wavering with wind
and water between us. Breath bubbles
rose, bursting under his nose.
My body now embraced,
a ritual purification in salt.
Dismembered dreams floated closer.
Something dissolved in a solution
that held me. Breathing easier,
I could imagine again.
Reprinted from VETERANS OF WAR, VETERANS OF PEACE, © 2006. Reprinted with permission of Koa Books.
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VETERANS OF WAR, VETERANS OF PEACEFor nearly fifteen years under Maxine Hong Kingston's guidance, members of the Veterans Writing Group have told, written, and rewritten their stories. Many of the works have been collected in VETERANS OF WAR, VETERANS OF PEACE. Read excerpts from the book online.
THE AMERICAN NOVEL: Maxine Hong KingstonProfile of Maxine Hong Kingston from PBS' 2007 series THE AMERICAN NOVEL. The Web site contains an extensive interactive timeline of works from 1826 to today.
WATCH Maxine Hong Kingston from WORLD OF IDEAS: Watch Bill Moyers' 1990 interview with Maxine Hong Kingston from the WORLD OF IDEAS series. Kingston and Moyers discuss Kingston's works THE WOMAN WARRIOR, CHINA MEN and TRIPMASTER MONKEY as well as her work with veterans.
BECOMING AMERICAN
In 2003, on NOW with Bill Moyers, Bill Moyers spoke with poet Susan Sontag about her experiences with war.
Published May 25, 2007
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