In this episode, we hear from poet Jane Hirshfield, who joined us in March 2009 at Benaroya Hall for a reading spanning across her career, and for a discussion on the importance of inviting the intimacies of poetry and finding ways to say “yes” to the difficult.

Described by The New Yorker as “radiant and passionate,” Hirshfield is now the author of eight collections of verse, many of which are influenced by her Zen Buddhist practice and her knowledge of classical Japanese verse, and which are concerned with the many dimensions of our connections with others.