Seamus Reads

The question we’re all dying to know. Or maybe it’s just me. “Too terrible it would be, to be wrong.” Please enjoy “Do Stones Feel?” from Blue Horses . This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit seamushawkins.substack.com

For the love of dogs. This poem talks about death. May “Her Grave” keep you company. From Devotions . This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit seamushawkins.substack.com

A poem about cycles, about the fullness of summer and the ache of the end in the height of ripeness. Please enjoy “The Orchard” from Mary Oliver’s Devotions . Cinco de Mayo commemorates the Mexican victory over the French forces of Napoleon III at the Battle of Puebla on May 5, 1862. This battle was significant as it thwarted Napoleon III's attempt to establish an empire in Mexico and provided a m...

Spring is well under way and this poem brings us right into the precariousness of caring for new, tender life. Please enjoy “To Shiva” from Mary Oliver’s 2014 collection of poems, Blue Horses. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit seamushawkins.substack.com

Welcome to another Monday and another le printemps-themed Mary Oliver poem. I hope you enjoyed some rest last week and have had a moment to get curious about buds, blooms, and the rummaging of birds making nests. Please enjoy “One or Two Things” originally found in Dream Work (1986) and read here from Devotions (2017). This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscrib...

Mary Oliver touches life, death, and the “cycle of time” intimately here in her poem “No Voyage”. Please enjoy. from Devotions: The Selected Poems of Mary Oliver This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit seamushawkins.substack.com

I am a quiet type – pensive, introverted, “artsy.” When Hannah Gadsby, in the comedy special Nanette (2018) , said “My favorite sound in the whole world is the sound of a teacup finding its place on a saucer.” I felt that. So I don’t usually do public displays (although I do love to perform, under the right circumstances), even for things like TDoV. But, this year, I am sharing these poems as a di...

Since I missed last week’s reading, please enjoy these two poems, “North Country” and “Rain,” both by Mary Oliver. This video is long so I am including the timestamps for each poem below: * North Country – (01:18 - 2:50) * Rain – (04:31 - 10:45) * * Please note that this poem is both long (in seven parts!) and that section three contains dark content. Both poems reflect the many facets of transfor...

From Devotions: The Selected Poems of Mary Oliver , p. 285. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit seamushawkins.substack.com

Good morning and good Monday to you all. This short, meditative poem is from Mary Oliver’s collection, Blue Horses . May it go with you and bolster you with the possibility of “not yet”. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit seamushawkins.substack.com

Though we are technically past the half-way point of winter, February often feels like the coldest, bleakest month. I thought this winter meditation, this reminder of the necessity of the dark part of our yearly cycle, could be helpful for those of us who find Winter difficult. This poem comes from Mary Oliver’s self-selected collection of poetry, Devotions , p. 49. This is a public episode. If yo...

Thank you for listening. Here we have Snyder’s final chapter and the epilogue, which I have included together in this final recording. Snyder concludes this short, prescient work by examining how modern democratic societies oscillate between two dangerous ways of rejecting history: the "politics of inevitability" that assumes progress is automatic, and the "politics of eternity" that mythologizes...

In Chapter 19, Snyder draws a crucial distinction between nationalism and patriotism , explaining how true patriotism demands holding one's nation accountable to its ideals and universal values, while nationalism promotes an unconditional sense of superiority that paradoxically undermines a nation's actual interests. The following reflection questions invite a conversation between this chapter and...

Examining Nazi legal theorist Carl Schmitt's insights on fascism, this passage warns how authoritarian leaders manufacture perpetual states of emergency to trade liberty for false security, while exploring how the label of "extremism" is often weaponized against legitimate dissent to establish and maintain tyrannical control. Reflection Questions: Think about times when you've been asked to sacrif...

Using the 1933 Reichstag fire as a historical touchstone, this passage examines how authoritarian leaders - from Hitler to Putin - manufacture and manipulate terror events (real, questionable, and fake) to consolidate power, demonstrating how calculated exploitation of public fear can transform democratic institutions into tools of oppression. Reflection Questions: The passage describes how terror...

Chapter 15 illustrates how everyday civil society and voluntary associations serve as crucial bulwarks against authoritarianism, drawing on historical examples from Eastern Europe. Seemingly non-political activities - from charitable giving to brewing beer - create networks of trust that ultimately strengthen democratic freedom and resist state control. Reflection Questions: The passage suggests t...

Citing various responses to Russian disinformation campaigns in Ukraine, this passage explores how Eastern European observers better anticipated America's vulnerability to similar tactics in 2016, highlighting the crucial importance of learning from other nations' experiences with defending democracy. Reflection Questions: How has exposure to other cultures and political systems (whether through t...

“It's not that I have something to hide. I have nothing I want you to see.” – The Girl, ANON This chapter examines how the 2016 email leaks demonstrated a dangerous erosion of privacy rights, arguing that when private communications are weaponized as public spectacle, it not only violates individual freedom but also degrades meaningful political discourse into conspiracy-driven sensationalism. Ref...

Chapter thirteen explores how successful resistance movements, exemplified by Poland's Solidarity movement of 1980-81, require both ideological diversity and physical presence in public spaces , demonstrating that while social media can organize protest, real change demands action in the physical world and the crossing of social boundaries. Reflection Questions: In your own community or social mov...

Snyder argues that the internet age has transformed our relationship with truth, claiming digital age cynicism and online echo chambers threaten factual journalism. This chapter emphasizes the vital role of professional journalism and individual fact-checking as crucial defenses against misinformation and authoritarian tactics that seek to undermine factual reporting. Reflection Questions: Conside...

Chapter 12 illuminates how simple acts of human acknowledgment became powerful symbols of resistance and solidarity during times of oppression, while emphasizing that friendship and community serve as both refuge and catalyst for positive change. Reflection Questions: Think about a time when you witnessed someone being socially isolated or marginalized in your community - perhaps at work, school,...

What is it from which not even the nervous voice of ambition can shake you? I hope this poem gives you permission to take the wrists of idleness this week and enjoy that which allows you to be, and to be free from the need to produce, perform, or purchase. Bonus Black Oak content: Yosemite Nature Notes 17: Black Oaks Visit the Yosemite National Park site This poem comes from Devotions: The Selecte...

Snyder draws parallels between historical totalitarian events and our modern media landscape, examining how limited vocabulary and screen-dominated information consumption can restrict our ability to think critically and resist propaganda. Reading diverse books (while we still can) remains our best defense against political manipulation and thought control. Reflection Questions: What is your prima...

While most European nations and influential figures accommodated Nazi Germany's rise to power, Churchill's steadfast resistance as British Prime Minister in 1940 proved pivotal to the war's outcome, demonstrating how individual courage to stand apart from prevailing attitudes can change history – a principle also exemplified by Teresa Prekerowa, who risked her life to save Jews from the Warsaw ghe...

Snyder draws on Klemperer's historical analysis to outline fascism's systematic destruction of truth using four modes: rejection of facts, repetitive propaganda, embracing contradictions, and blind faith in leadership – revealing how modern "post-truth" politics mirrors historical pre-fascist patterns. Reflection Questions: Have you noticed yourself or others making small concessions to ideas you...