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A Look at “Poetry Matters – Write!”
This week we explore Poetry Matters – Write! (What you don’t know CAN hurt you) by Douglas McCulloch — a call to see poetry not as luxury, but as necessity. calls his poems “candles in the wind,” lighting up the truths we live but rarely name. His work reminds us that writing—and truly seeing—can lead to deeper understanding in a time of noise and distraction. Tune in as we ask: what can poetry still teach us about living with honesty and purpose?
Welcome to this week’s edition of Newsgram!
The world we live in has always been a complicated place but I think navigating its challenges has never been more difficult. I realize that every generation has unique obstacles but it seems like our current society seems to have more of them, or I should have bigger ones than previous generations because I’ve always found that reading is the key to understanding and doing that today presents unique challenges. Most of that comes down to the fact that unbiased literature, while it is definitely out there, you need to dig a bit deeper to find it and that is one of the challenges I’m talking about. I came across an interesting man named Doug McCullougch that I think you’ll enjoy meeting because his goal is to enlighten you with poetry while encouraging you to think. Just read, think, talk amongst yourselves a bit and see where that gets us. Here’s Doug.
Douglas McCulloch: My idea is I want people to read poetry. I don't necessarily want them to pay me for it. And if I can get them to read it without getting the money, and that's fine for me, I'd be happy with that. Because it would mean that the ideas were getting out and people were sharing them. And I have to say that I've organized a couple of readings and I never expected to be so uplifted by the positive response. I don't mean cheering or clapping. I just mean people took the ideas seriously and considered them carefully and asked excellent questions. And that's, to me, that's everything about it. If we have conversations going, if we get people to entertain these ideas, even if they don't buy the bloody book, I don't care so long as they think more, so long as we improve the way that people interact with this wonderful but difficult world that we live in.
Sam: The name of the book is Poetry Matters – Write! The subtitle is, What you don’t know CAN hurt you. His work reminds us that writing—and truly seeing—can lead to deeper understanding in a time of noise and distraction. So what can poetry still teach us about living with honesty and purpose? Well for one thing poetry has always been a great way to start a conversation.
Douglas McCulloch: 1966 or 65, I was introduced to poetry writing as a part of a school subject, and I find it very difficult to stop. It's a way of making sense, which I value very highly, I'll put it like that.
Sam: The book addresses issues like workplace injustice, the search for truth and perspective amid some imperfect systems and the need for young people to form independent conclusions about life and society. Here’s an example.
Douglas McCulloch: When you go into a job, you may find that the person who's supposed to be looking after you is actually a bit of a nasty person, and how do you deal with that? If you do something wrong and they start to go after you, what do you do? Well, it's okay, it happens, and the poem tries to get a sense of perspective, a realistic sense of perspective.You can't say to people, oh, the law will look after you, oh, the justice will be done. It doesn't always happen. That's what I mean when I say that the book perhaps supplies some useful questions. It certainly is not a wonderful source of enormous and wonderful answers. It does have some of that, but the questions, I think, are more important, and young people are not slow either. They know what the score is, and it doesn't take much for them to put these ideas into their own outlooks, and I hope, I humbly hope that some of these will actually be useful to them in their own careers.
To be honest I was initially afraid this was going to be a political book, because there’s a lot of that going around today but it’s really more of a shared wisdom experience. A creative, intelligent and experienced man sharing a bit of what he’s learned.
Douglas McCulloch: I'm not blaming anyone, but I felt as a mature person, and having knocked around a bit and been in various interesting places from time to time, that I could perhaps observe and conclude and perhaps convey some aspects of how the world actually works.
The book does not offer easy answers and to suggest that I think would undermine his efforts. It encourages readers to think critically, adapt and find meaning in the complexity because honest questioning is more powerful than certainty. I know…that can be frustrating if you’re a young student but if someone gives you the answers then all you're doing is following and today’s world needs leaders not followers.
Take a listen to one of his poems. This one is called Sam Johnson’s Brutus. Samuel Johnson is credited with writing the first English dictionary and while there is some debate about that, his 1755 work, A Dictionary of the English Language has definitely left its mark on the world.
Our connection wasn’t perfect but I think you’ll get the gist of it. Take a listen…
Douglas McCulloch: There is no end to the leap of self-knowledge. Here is infinity, drink what you will. To know who you are is to tremble, and courage to stand, reach out, and drink of your filth. Let the world go to hell, it was never worth saving. A ball of clay mud on a galaxy's rump. But we stay, watch for daybreak, and our offspring first gleaming…. Never give up, if you choke, keep on drinking. Though visions torment, and other vices are wry, Sam Johnson's bruises see clear in the morning. Though the cup of their liquor will never run dry. There's the hashtag, will never run dry.
He’s talking about facing hard truths and enduring through self-reflection which is a big part of the goal here. The book also addresses some sobering realities.
Douglas McCulloch: We the clever rich white men once were, colorful natives singing content around our own hearthstones. We have since followed our cleverness elsewhere, made a parent of progress, and slowly infected the spleen of mankind.
Not everything should be about money or economic development. Can you see how he sparks conversation?
Douglas McCulloch: I mean, to some extent, we are buying our lives at the expense of the poor world. That's something we need to face up to. It's not, it can't go on, not forever. And, well, that's the sort of, there are big lessons and there are small ones, but obviously the big ones are most important. And the students are fighting their way through a morass of complicated, intricate, and sometimes not understandable features. And they're doing their best. And maybe this, without actually expecting anything from them, without actually telling them what to do, I like to think I'm trying to help them to think about what they're facing and perhaps come to their own conclusions.Their own conclusions are the ones that really matter.
The book is an enlightening read for anyone, but especially for students because they are the ones who will face the challenges of tomorrow. The challenges will be hard and there will be many.
I like how Doug refers to the earth as “a ball of clay on a galaxy’s rump,” and while he’s being wry about it, he’s deeply concerned for our planet and the people on it. He’s also not just trying to sell books—he wants people to read, to think, connect and learn.
So visit your local library and ask for Poetry Matters – Write! (What You Don’t Know CAN Hurt You) by Douglas McCulloch. And if they don’t have it, see if they’ll order it. Because, as Doug says, “My generation has had its turn.” It’s time for the next one to do what they can to create a brighter future.
Douglas McCulloch: If we have conversations going, if we get people to entertain these ideas, even if they don't buy the bloody book, I don't care so long as they think more, so long as we improve the way that people interact with this wonderful but difficult world that we live in.
Sam: Poetry Matters – Write! is available now on Amazon.
And that’ll do it for this edition of Newsgram from WebTalkRadio.com. Thanks for listening.
https://www.amazon.com/Poetry-Matters-Write-What-dont-ebook/dp/B0DBKVGH5B
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By WebTalkRadio.netThis week we explore Poetry Matters – Write! (What you don’t know CAN hurt you) by Douglas McCulloch — a call to see poetry not as luxury, but as necessity. calls his poems “candles in the wind,” lighting up the truths we live but rarely name. His work reminds us that writing—and truly seeing—can lead to deeper understanding in a time of noise and distraction. Tune in as we ask: what can poetry still teach us about living with honesty and purpose?
Welcome to this week’s edition of Newsgram!
The world we live in has always been a complicated place but I think navigating its challenges has never been more difficult. I realize that every generation has unique obstacles but it seems like our current society seems to have more of them, or I should have bigger ones than previous generations because I’ve always found that reading is the key to understanding and doing that today presents unique challenges. Most of that comes down to the fact that unbiased literature, while it is definitely out there, you need to dig a bit deeper to find it and that is one of the challenges I’m talking about. I came across an interesting man named Doug McCullougch that I think you’ll enjoy meeting because his goal is to enlighten you with poetry while encouraging you to think. Just read, think, talk amongst yourselves a bit and see where that gets us. Here’s Doug.
Douglas McCulloch: My idea is I want people to read poetry. I don't necessarily want them to pay me for it. And if I can get them to read it without getting the money, and that's fine for me, I'd be happy with that. Because it would mean that the ideas were getting out and people were sharing them. And I have to say that I've organized a couple of readings and I never expected to be so uplifted by the positive response. I don't mean cheering or clapping. I just mean people took the ideas seriously and considered them carefully and asked excellent questions. And that's, to me, that's everything about it. If we have conversations going, if we get people to entertain these ideas, even if they don't buy the bloody book, I don't care so long as they think more, so long as we improve the way that people interact with this wonderful but difficult world that we live in.
Sam: The name of the book is Poetry Matters – Write! The subtitle is, What you don’t know CAN hurt you. His work reminds us that writing—and truly seeing—can lead to deeper understanding in a time of noise and distraction. So what can poetry still teach us about living with honesty and purpose? Well for one thing poetry has always been a great way to start a conversation.
Douglas McCulloch: 1966 or 65, I was introduced to poetry writing as a part of a school subject, and I find it very difficult to stop. It's a way of making sense, which I value very highly, I'll put it like that.
Sam: The book addresses issues like workplace injustice, the search for truth and perspective amid some imperfect systems and the need for young people to form independent conclusions about life and society. Here’s an example.
Douglas McCulloch: When you go into a job, you may find that the person who's supposed to be looking after you is actually a bit of a nasty person, and how do you deal with that? If you do something wrong and they start to go after you, what do you do? Well, it's okay, it happens, and the poem tries to get a sense of perspective, a realistic sense of perspective.You can't say to people, oh, the law will look after you, oh, the justice will be done. It doesn't always happen. That's what I mean when I say that the book perhaps supplies some useful questions. It certainly is not a wonderful source of enormous and wonderful answers. It does have some of that, but the questions, I think, are more important, and young people are not slow either. They know what the score is, and it doesn't take much for them to put these ideas into their own outlooks, and I hope, I humbly hope that some of these will actually be useful to them in their own careers.
To be honest I was initially afraid this was going to be a political book, because there’s a lot of that going around today but it’s really more of a shared wisdom experience. A creative, intelligent and experienced man sharing a bit of what he’s learned.
Douglas McCulloch: I'm not blaming anyone, but I felt as a mature person, and having knocked around a bit and been in various interesting places from time to time, that I could perhaps observe and conclude and perhaps convey some aspects of how the world actually works.
The book does not offer easy answers and to suggest that I think would undermine his efforts. It encourages readers to think critically, adapt and find meaning in the complexity because honest questioning is more powerful than certainty. I know…that can be frustrating if you’re a young student but if someone gives you the answers then all you're doing is following and today’s world needs leaders not followers.
Take a listen to one of his poems. This one is called Sam Johnson’s Brutus. Samuel Johnson is credited with writing the first English dictionary and while there is some debate about that, his 1755 work, A Dictionary of the English Language has definitely left its mark on the world.
Our connection wasn’t perfect but I think you’ll get the gist of it. Take a listen…
Douglas McCulloch: There is no end to the leap of self-knowledge. Here is infinity, drink what you will. To know who you are is to tremble, and courage to stand, reach out, and drink of your filth. Let the world go to hell, it was never worth saving. A ball of clay mud on a galaxy's rump. But we stay, watch for daybreak, and our offspring first gleaming…. Never give up, if you choke, keep on drinking. Though visions torment, and other vices are wry, Sam Johnson's bruises see clear in the morning. Though the cup of their liquor will never run dry. There's the hashtag, will never run dry.
He’s talking about facing hard truths and enduring through self-reflection which is a big part of the goal here. The book also addresses some sobering realities.
Douglas McCulloch: We the clever rich white men once were, colorful natives singing content around our own hearthstones. We have since followed our cleverness elsewhere, made a parent of progress, and slowly infected the spleen of mankind.
Not everything should be about money or economic development. Can you see how he sparks conversation?
Douglas McCulloch: I mean, to some extent, we are buying our lives at the expense of the poor world. That's something we need to face up to. It's not, it can't go on, not forever. And, well, that's the sort of, there are big lessons and there are small ones, but obviously the big ones are most important. And the students are fighting their way through a morass of complicated, intricate, and sometimes not understandable features. And they're doing their best. And maybe this, without actually expecting anything from them, without actually telling them what to do, I like to think I'm trying to help them to think about what they're facing and perhaps come to their own conclusions.Their own conclusions are the ones that really matter.
The book is an enlightening read for anyone, but especially for students because they are the ones who will face the challenges of tomorrow. The challenges will be hard and there will be many.
I like how Doug refers to the earth as “a ball of clay on a galaxy’s rump,” and while he’s being wry about it, he’s deeply concerned for our planet and the people on it. He’s also not just trying to sell books—he wants people to read, to think, connect and learn.
So visit your local library and ask for Poetry Matters – Write! (What You Don’t Know CAN Hurt You) by Douglas McCulloch. And if they don’t have it, see if they’ll order it. Because, as Doug says, “My generation has had its turn.” It’s time for the next one to do what they can to create a brighter future.
Douglas McCulloch: If we have conversations going, if we get people to entertain these ideas, even if they don't buy the bloody book, I don't care so long as they think more, so long as we improve the way that people interact with this wonderful but difficult world that we live in.
Sam: Poetry Matters – Write! is available now on Amazon.
And that’ll do it for this edition of Newsgram from WebTalkRadio.com. Thanks for listening.
https://www.amazon.com/Poetry-Matters-Write-What-dont-ebook/dp/B0DBKVGH5B