About this episode

This episode features the poem 'Return Path' by Lesley Wheeler, exploring themes of repetition and memory through the villanelle form.

Today’s poem is Return Path by Lesley Wheeler. The Slowdown is your daily poetry ritual. In this episode, Maggie writes… “The multiple repetitions and the circular nature of the villanelle make it a good form for poems that grapple with an insistent memory, an unresolved emotion, or a feeling of being trapped. But the form can be a container for any kind of subject matter in which repetition feels essential. So much of life is repetition, after all, isn’t it? We perform the same actions again and again, day after day. This might sound mundane, but when repetition is reverent, it also forms rituals — repetitions which give our lives meaning. Today’s poem is a villanelle, and its use of the word ‘circuit’ makes the repetition especially apropos.” This show is supported by gifts from listeners. Support The Slowdown with a donation today. Slowdownshow.org/donate

People in this episode

Host: Maggie

Guest: Lesley Wheeler

Topics covered

• poetry
• villanelle
• memory
• repetition
• rituals

Keywords

• poetry
• villanelle
• memory
• repetition
• rituals
• Lesley Wheeler
• The Slowdown

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: American Public Media

Books & works: Return Path

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