Maggie Smith on Despair, Hope, Divorce, and Poetry

Depresh Mode with John Moe

Maximum Fun

Mental Health, Comedy, John Moe, Comedy Interviews, Interview, Health & Fitness

5 • 777 Ratings

🗓️ 23 May 2022

⏱️ 63 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

The Ohio-based writer shares three poems and a great deal of insight.

Transcript

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0:00.0	One of my favorite characters on The Simpsons is Nelson. Nelson Munts. I like Nelson because he's
0:15.0	complicated and he will surprise you. Nelson's kind of a bully, sure, but he is also someone who has been hurt, someone
0:23.0	who's looking for a way to deal with all of the anger and pain and resentment within him.
0:29.3	Season 7, episode 20, episode called Bart on the Road. Bart, Millhouse, Martin Prince,
0:36.9	and Nelson are on a long road trip. They've
0:40.0	procured a car, and Nelson makes them all stop in Branson, Missouri so he can see his idol perform.
0:47.8	Andy Williams. Nelson loves Andy Williams, loves the gentle, voiced crooning, and he stares, transfixed in love through
0:57.7	the whole concert. As they leave the concert hall, Nelson says, I didn't think he was going to sing
1:03.7	Moon River, and then bam, second encore. Tears of joy. Okay, anyway, hi, it's Depresh Mode. I'm John Moe. I'm glad you're here.
1:14.0	Our guest this week is kind of the Andy Williams of the poetry world. Maggie Smith is a poet.
1:20.1	She lives in Ohio, and she became pretty famous for a poem called Good Bones that came out in 2016.
1:28.1	It's about the cruelty of the world and the pursuit and preservation of hope.
1:34.1	I wanted to get Maggie on this show because I've been thinking a lot about despair and about hope and about cruelty lately.
1:42.7	I've been thinking about the cruelty of the world and the fear of living in it.
1:46.9	There is so much to be anxious about right now, so much to be depressed about,
1:53.1	so much trauma that has happened and is happening and is looming on the horizon.
1:58.7	And if you have disorders or just problems related to anxiety or depression or trauma already,
2:07.1	these are tough times, to put it way too mildly.
2:11.6	I was going to lead with that, but I thought maybe Nelson was a little more palatable,
2:17.1	bring you in a little bit using cartoons.
2:19.3	One way of dealing with tough times, historically, is to turn to the poets for some guidance, for some reflection, maybe wisdom or fellowship.
2:30.4	Just as Andy Williams has other great songs, can't take my Eyes Off You, Where Do I Begin from the movie Love Story?
	...

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