Opening to Wonder with Ada Limón
From Tricycle Talks by Tricycle: The Buddhist Review
April 15, 2026 · 59 min
About this episode
Ada Limón discusses the transformative power of poetry and its role in healing and connection.
Ada Limón is the author of seven books of poetry, and she recently completed her term as the 24th Poet Laureate of the United States. During her tenure as Poet Laureate, Limón undertook a series of projects harnessing poetry to transform our relationship to the natural world, from installing poems on picnic benches in national parks across the country to engraving a poem on a spacecraft that is on its way to the second moon of Jupiter. In her new book, Against Breaking: On the Power of Poetry, she draws from her experience as Poet Laureate to argue that poetry can be a powerful force for healing, connection, and courage. In this episode of Life As It Is, Tricycle’s editor-in-chief, James Shaheen, and meditation teacher Sharon Salzberg sit down with Limón to discuss why she views poetry as a sacred language, how poetry can help us move through the world with courage and equanimity, what it means for poetry to exist in the questions, and how reading and writing poetry can help us imagine a different type of future.
People in this episode
Hosts: James Shaheen, Sharon Salzberg
Guest: Ada Limón
Topics covered
- poetry
- healing
- nature
- courage
- spirituality
Keywords
- poetry
- Ada Limón
- healing
- nature
- spirituality
- Poet Laureate
- Against Breaking
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: Tricycle: The Buddhist Review
Books & works: Against Breaking: On the Power of Poetry
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