Episode #106 A Stranger - Saeed Jones

In this all-new episode, Connor and Jack explore the incredible poem "A Stranger" by Saeed Jones. They discuss the poem's grappling with the loss of a mother, the use of distance and restraint, and the many strangers populating this short lyric.

A Stranger

By: Saeed Jones

I wonder if my dead mother still thinks of me.

I know I don’t know her new name. I don’t know

her, not now. I don’t know if “her” is the word

burning in a stranger’s mind when he sees my dead

mother walking down the street in her bright black

dress. I wonder if he inhales the cigarette smoke

that will eventually kill him and thinks “I wish I knew

a woman who was both the light and every shadow

the light pierces.” I wonder if a passing glance at my dead

mother is enough to make a poet out of anyone. I wonder

if I’m the song she hums as she waits for the light to change

or if I’m just the traffic signal holding her up.

Find us at our website: www.closetalking.com/

Find us on Facebook at: facebook.com/closetalking


Find us on Twitter at: twitter.com/closetalking


Find us on Instagram: @closetalkingpoetry

You can always send us an e-mail with thoughts on this or any of our previous podcasts, as well as suggestions for future shows, at [email protected].