Watching My Mother's Breath

Length 05:22
Licensor Dale Short
Producer(s) Dale Short
Formats Debut (not aired nationally), First-person essay, Soft Feature
Topics Family, Literature, Women
Produced April 8, 2005
Added to PRX April 8, 2005
 

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Summary:

A gentle poem about the ending of a 90-year-old farm woman's full life

Additional Credits and Funding:

The poem is from James Mersmann's book "Straying Toward Home," published in 2004 by Court Street Press.

Timely on:

May: Mother's Day

Tones:

Contemplative, Intimate, Thoughtful

Language:

English

Description:

With the early spring of 2005 dominated by news about contentious end-of-life issues, Kansas-born poet James Mersmann reads a moving poem about the gentle passing of his mother at age 90, following a stroke. (Not yet broadcast.)