The Slowdown: Poetry & Reflection Daily
American Public Media
Host Maggie Smith is your daily poetry companion. Poetry is one of the greatest tools we have to wield our own attention — to consider our own lives and the lives of others, to help us live creatively and compassionately, to use that attention to lean into wonder, and joy, and truth, and to find hope — to keep hoping. The Slowdown community knows that reflecting on a poem, every weekday, can connect us to our inner world and the world around us. Listen as you make your morning coffee, as you go on a walk in your neighborhood, as you pull away from the to-do list, as you resist the dismal, endless scroll to share five minutes of perspective through the lens of poetry, from poets old and new, well-loved and emerging onto the scene. Brought to you by American Public Media, in partnership with the Poetry Foundation.
Episodes
Mentioned books
Mar 4, 2026 • 6min
1469: Pardon My Heart by Marcus Jackson
A meditation on having a big, tender heart and what that sensitivity reveals. Reflections on whether numbing feelings would change how one sees the world. A heartfelt reading of Marcus Jackson’s poem that leans into unabashed emotion. Short closing notes and a brief promo.
Mar 3, 2026 • 6min
1468: Five Paragraph Essay on Time by Kathleen Flenniken
A reflective take on procrastination reframed as triage and prioritizing urgent tasks. Exploration of why projects get postponed and how delay can reveal priorities. A close reading of a poem that mixes essay form, morning vigil imagery, domestic details, and a sudden, unsettling final image.
Mar 2, 2026 • 6min
1467: Geranium by Karen Solie
A short reflection on stubborn volunteer plants and what their hardiness reveals. Anecdotes about failing at houseplants and neighborhood seedlings taking hold. Admiration for resourceful greenery that surprises with unexpected blooms. A calm reading of a poem that centers on seeds that root themselves.
Feb 27, 2026 • 7min
1466: Poem about everything except— by Amy Lemmon
A reflection on poetic identity and how people respond when someone says they write poetry. A discussion about planning poems versus listening for where language leads. An argument that surprise and discovery are central to poetic practice. A full reading of Amy Lemmon's richly imagistic poem titled Poem about everything except—.
Feb 26, 2026 • 6min
1465: Or am I a room with a roof taken off, still holding onto my idea of ceiling by Kelly Hoffer
Today’s poem is Or am I a room with a roof taken off, still holding onto my idea of ceiling by Kelly Hoffer. The Slowdown is your daily poetry ritual. In this episode, Maggie writes… “Fireplaces, thunderstorms, ocean waves—these sounds are popular “white noise” for sleep and relaxation. And it’s odd, when I think about how these sounds represent very real dangers in nature. About how we are soothed by the contained version of something that can harm us.” Celebrate the power of poems with a gift to The Slowdown today. Every donation makes a difference: https://tinyurl.com/rjm4synp
Feb 25, 2026 • 6min
1464: Somewhere Else by Adam J. Gellings
Today’s poem is Somewhere Else by Adam J. Gellings. The Slowdown is your daily poetry ritual. In this episode, Maggie writes… “I was born at 4:30 in the afternoon on a cold Sunday in February. All of this is either useless information — time of day, day of the week, month of the year — or it’s part of our own myth-making.” Celebrate the power of poems with a gift to The Slowdown today. Every donation makes a difference: https://tinyurl.com/rjm4synp
Feb 24, 2026 • 6min
1463: Sleep by Matthew Dickman
Today’s poem is Sleep by Matthew Dickman. The Slowdown is your daily poetry ritual. In this episode, Maggie writes… “Poems so often say the things we can’t. They give language and shape to ideas that feel too big for words — like love, and mortality, and grief.” Celebrate the power of poems with a gift to The Slowdown today. Every donation makes a difference: https://tinyurl.com/rjm4synp
Feb 23, 2026 • 6min
1462: Perspective, Coyoacán by Corey Van Landingham
Today’s poem is Perspective, Coyoacán by Corey Van Landingham. The Slowdown is your daily poetry ritual. In this episode, Maggie writes… “Today’s poem is an ekphrastic poem, a poem inspired by a piece of art. It opens with an epigraph that is a quote by Frida Kahlo. It strikes me now, reading that line of hers, that while she’s talking about painting herself, it can also refer to writing about oneself.” Celebrate the power of poems with a gift to The Slowdown today. Every donation makes a difference: https://tinyurl.com/rjm4synp
Feb 20, 2026 • 7min
1461: Word for It by Kevin Craft
A reading that urges close attention to small natural miracles. Listens to porpoises moving through kelp and the breathy sounds that carry across evening water. Reflects on the distance between human life and wild life while celebrating the act of witnessing. Ends on the idea that observation itself helps us endure.
Feb 19, 2026 • 6min
1460: Poem to Remind Myself of the Natural Order of Things by Donika Kelly
Today’s poem is Poem to Remind Myself of the Natural Order of Things by Donika Kelly. The Slowdown is your daily poetry ritual. In this episode, Maggie writes… “Today’s poem is such a beautiful meditation on knowing ourselves, and knowing what we need to be at home in our own lives.” Celebrate the power of poems with a gift to The Slowdown today. Every donation makes a difference: https://tinyurl.com/rjm4synp
