Skip to content
Sign in
Artwork for The Slowdown: Poetry & Reflection Daily
ArtsPerforming Arts

The Slowdown: Poetry & Reflection Daily

American Public Media

Host Maggie Smith is your daily poetry companion. Poetry is one of the greatest tools we have to wield our own attention — to consider our own lives and the lives of others, to help us live creatively and compassionately, to use that attention to lean into wonder, and joy, and truth, and to find hope — to keep hoping. The Slowdown community knows that reflecting on a poem, every weekday, can connect us to our inner world and the world around us. Listen as you make your morning coffee, as you go on a walk in your neighborhood, as you pull away from the to-do list, as you resist the dismal, endless scroll to share five minutes of perspective through the lens of poetry, from poets old and new, well-loved and emerging onto the scene. Brought to you by American Public Media, in partnership with the Poetry Foundation.

Play
Open in
  • 72 episodes
  • daily
  • Avg 6 min
  • English

Episodes 72

NewestOldestLongest
All20Unplayed20In progress0Played0
Counted on this page — what you have heard stays on this device, so it is not something the list can be paged by.
  • Yesterday · 5 min

    1342: [encore] And Then It Was Less Bleak Because We Said So by Wendy Xu

    Today’s poem is And Then It Was Less Bleak Because We Said So by Wendy Xu. The Slowdown is your daily poetry ritual. In this episode, Maggie writes… “When the world is on fire, it can feel frivolous to go dancing, to go to concerts, to host parties, to take vacations. Today’s poem so beautifully addresses the importance of holding onto joy—and onto one another—when the world feels dismal.” This show is supported by gifts from listeners. Support The Slowdown with a donation today. Slowdownshow.org/donate

  • Tuesday · 5 min

    1339: [encore] Wind-Related Ripple in the Wheatfield by Mikko Harvey

    Today’s poem is Wind-Related Ripple in the Wheatfield by Mikko Harvey. The Slowdown is your daily poetry ritual. In this episode, Maggie writes… “Who might I have been—or with whom, or where—if the timing had been different? Did I arrive too late to certain parts of my life, or too early? Or am I right on time? The “Choose Your Own Adventure” aspect of life is something on my mind a lot. I suspect it was on this poet’s mind, too.” This show is supported by gifts from listeners. Support The Slowdown with a donation today. Slowdownshow.org/donate

  • Monday · 6 min

    1338: [encore] Are you bringing fruits, plants, seeds, by Karen Llagas

    Today’s poem is Are you bringing fruits, plants, seeds, by Karen Llagas. The Slowdown is your daily poetry ritual. In this episode, Maggie writes… “Today’s poem looks at the anxiety and the absurdity of America: How many people seem fixated on the dangers outside our borders without acknowledging the dangers within.” This show is supported by gifts from listeners. Support The Slowdown with a donation today. Slowdownshow.org/donate

  • Friday · 16 min

    R.K. Russell: They/Them by Danez Smith (Extended Version)

    Today’s poem is They/Them by Danez Smith, with special guest R.K. Russell. R.K. Russell is an NFL legend, writer, and social justice advocate who made history by becoming the first out active NFL player to identify as bisexual. The Slowdown is your daily poetry ritual. In this episode, R.K. shares… “Oftentimes we see writing as a reflection of society, when really writing is where we bend society. It's where we bend the rules. Society is not shaping what we write. What we write is shaping society. Identity and relationships are what bust down the framework.” This show is supported by gifts from listeners. Support The Slowdown with a donation today. Slowdownshow.org/donate

  • October 8 · 6 min

    R.K. Russell: They/Them by Danez Smith

    Today’s poem is They/Them by Danez Smith, with special guest R.K. Russell. R.K. Russell is an NFL legend, writer, and social justice advocate who made history by becoming the first out active NFL player to identify as bisexual. The Slowdown is your daily poetry ritual. In this episode, R.K. shares… “When you start to want to live authentically as yourself, there are also sacrifices that must be made. A lot of those sacrifices are rooted in your relationships. How people view you, how people want you to give to them and love them and care for them.” This show is supported by gifts from listeners. Support The Slowdown with a donation today. Slowdownshow.org/donate

  • October 7 · 5 min

    1337: [encore] New York Address by Linda Gregg

    Today’s poem is New York Address by Linda Gregg. The Slowdown is your daily poetry ritual. In this encore episode, Maggie writes… “Today’s poem captures that feeling when you’ve just had it — you’ve absolutely hit your limit. But at the same time, you realize that you’re the only person who can pick yourself back up. You have to keep yourself going.” This show is supported by gifts from listeners. Support The Slowdown with a donation today. Slowdownshow.org/donate

  • October 6 · 5 min

    1335: [encore] Bonfire Opera by Danusha Laméris

    Today’s poem is Bonfire Opera by Danusha Laméris. The Slowdown is your daily poetry ritual. In this encore episode, Maggie writes… “Yes, I have new lines around my eyes and new glints of silver in my hair, but my body continues to surprise me in wonderful ways, too. It brings me a lot of pleasure—maybe even more pleasure than it did when I was in my teens, twenties, and even thirties. Because I appreciate it. And because I am less self-conscious. That is one of the gifts of aging: Becoming more yourself, and caring less about what others think about you or expect from you.” This show is supported by gifts from listeners. Support The Slowdown with a donation today. Slowdownshow.org/donate

  • October 5 · 5 min

    1334: [encore] Étude by Amy Gerstler

    Today’s poem is Étude by Amy Gerstler. The Slowdown is your daily poetry ritual. In this encore episode, Maggie writes… “Today’s poem is a celebration of sound, and also a celebration of our own power to interpret sound and make meaning—as poets do. Poems, like songs, are meant to live in the air. They are their own music.” This show is supported by gifts from listeners. Support The Slowdown with a donation today. Slowdownshow.org/donate

  • October 2 · 9 min

    David Duchovny: Dream Song 1 by John Berryman (Extended Version)

    Today’s poem is Dream Song 1 by John Berryman, with special guest David Duchovny. You know him from his breakout role as Fox Mulder on The X-Files, as well as appearances on other hit series like Californication and Twin Peaks. Here’s an extended conversation with David that we hope you enjoy.The Slowdown is your daily poetry ritual. In this episode, David shares… “I remember when I first read "Dream Song 1" by John Berryman in high school. I think I understood that I was coming out of the Eden of childhood in a way and having these complicated thoughts, more complicated thoughts than I'd had as a child. And not that I would've put it in words that I just put it in now, but there was a loss involved that was moving to me.” This show is supported by gifts from listeners. Support The Slowdown with a donation today. Slowdownshow.org/donate

  • October 1 · 6 min

    David Duchovny: Dream Song 1 by John Berryman

    Today’s poem is Dream Song 1 by John Berryman, with special guest David Duchovny. You know him from his breakout role as Fox Mulder on The X-Files, as well as appearances on other hit series like Californication and Twin Peaks. The Slowdown is your daily poetry ritual. In this episode, David shares… “Every day is a loss. We can focus on love and focus on positives, but the fact is we're living in time, and things are being stripped away from us constantly. And it can lead to either depression or to valuing things — it just depends on your psychology, your worldview, the rigorousness of your yearning to want to be on the positive side of things and not depress yourself too much.” This show is supported by gifts from listeners. Support The Slowdown with a donation today. Slowdownshow.org/donate

  • September 30 · 5 min

    1333: [encore] Crossing the Line by E. Ethelbert Miller

    Today’s poem is Crossing the Line by E. Ethelbert Miller. The Slowdown is your daily poetry ritual. In this episode, Maggie writes… “Today’s poem reads to me like a love poem, a tribute, to a long friendship. It reminds me that part of how we know ourselves is through the people who know us best, and who have loved us through our changes.” This show is supported by gifts from listeners. Support The Slowdown with a donation today. Slowdownshow.org/donate

  • September 29 · 6 min

    1430: [encore] Earth Shovel by Dan Albergotti

    Today’s poem is Earth Shovel by Dan Albergotti. The Slowdown is your daily poetry ritual. In this episode, Maggie writes… “Today’s poem, which looks at the fragility of our planet, begins with two epigraphs. One is from American astronomer Carl Sagan, from his book Pale Blue Dot. The other is the famous line from politician Michael Steele.” This show is supported by gifts from listeners. Support The Slowdown with a donation today. Slowdownshow.org/donate

  • September 28 · 5 min

    1359: [encore] Lotioning My Mother’s Back by Ama Codjoe

    Today’s poem is Lotioning My Mother’s Back by Ama Codjoe. The Slowdown is your daily poetry ritual. In this episode, Maggie writes… “The world feels like a hard place right now—a not very soft and tender place. In times that feel difficult, it’s tempting to retreat, to harden ourselves, to “numb out.” But I think, more and more, that tenderness is what we need—toward one another, and toward ourselves. We need touch. We need connection. We need soft places to land. We need to hold on to one another.” Celebrate the power of poems with a gift to The Slowdown today. Every donation makes a difference: https://tinyurl.com/rjm4synp

  • September 25 · 6 min

    [encore] 1501: at the baggage claim in JFK by Lo Naylor

    Today’s poem is at the baggage claim in JFK by Lo Naylor. This episode was originally released on April 24, 2026. The Slowdown is your daily poetry ritual. In this episode, Maggie writes… “When I’m preparing for a multi-city book tour, I’m not nervous about reading in front of people or answering questions or finding my way around a strange place. I’m nervous about getting where I’m going. And with somewhat regular government shutdowns impacting TSA these days, those nerves aren’t coming from nowhere! But there are so many beautiful moments in airports, if you pay attention: parents comforting children, or occupying them with silly games; couples excited to be going on a trip together; teams of uniformed student athletes traveling to, or from, a big game.” This show is supported by gifts from listeners. Support The Slowdown with a donation today. Slowdownshow.org/donate

  • September 24 · 6 min

    [encore] 1445: Hackberry by Cecily Parks

    Today’s poem is Hackberry by Cecily Parks. This episode was originally released on January 29, 2026. The Slowdown is your daily poetry ritual. In this episode, Maggie writes… “Today’s poem is a kind of love poem—to a beloved tree, and to the sense of home it created.” This show is supported by gifts from listeners. Support The Slowdown with a donation today. Slowdownshow.org/donate

  • September 23 · 6 min

    [encore] 1568: Panegyric by Leila Farjami

    Today’s poem is Panegyric by Leila Farjami. This episode was originally released on July 28, 2026. The Slowdown is your daily poetry ritual. In this episode, Maggie writes… “Poems that engage with war and grief are texts that communicate to us in ways that news articles about war, and loss, and grief cannot. An article might tell us what happened, who died, how many casualties there were. It should provide facts as to who, what, where, when, and how. It might even attempt the why. But a poem sings to us. A poem sits with us. Holds us, even.” This show is supported by gifts from listeners. Support The Slowdown with a donation today. Slowdownshow.org/donate

  • September 22 · 6 min

    [encore] 1507: How to Dress a Star by Nicholas Goodly

    Today’s poem is How to Dress a Star by Nicholas Goodly. This episode was originally released on May 4, 2026. The Slowdown is your daily poetry ritual. In this episode, Maggie writes… “Today’s poem reminds me to feel tenderness toward the earlier versions of me. It reminds me that we should acknowledge our past selves more. Just think of what earlier versions of you were able to endure. Bless them for that.” This show is supported by gifts from listeners. Support The Slowdown with a donation today. Slowdownshow.org/donate

  • September 21 · 5 min

    [encore] 1347: Animal Prudence by Kathy Fagan

    Today’s poem is Animal Prudence by Kathy Fagan. This episode was originally released on September 8, 2025. The Slowdown is your daily poetry ritual. In this episode, Maggie writes… “Today’s poem is a favorite of mine for its associative leaps—the way it carries us from image to image, memory to memory. I admire the way it uses the language we encounter in our lives to make those leaps: road signs, the names of streets and flowers, the lists we find in our pockets.” This show is supported by gifts from listeners. Support The Slowdown with a donation today. Slowdownshow.org/donate

  • September 18 · 6 min

    [encore] 1336: I Find Myself Defending Pigeons by Keith S. Wilson

    Today’s poem is I Find Myself Defending Pigeons by Keith S. Wilson. This episode was originally released on August 22, 2025. The Slowdown is your daily poetry ritual. In this episode, Maggie writes… “One thing I love about poems is how they give us the opportunity to take our time, to dial in, to look and listen closely. Not everything screams to be noticed. Some things barely whisper! Or they might just squawk or coo now and then.” This show is supported by gifts from listeners. Support The Slowdown with a donation today. Slowdownshow.org/donate

  • September 17 · 5 min

    [encore] 1369: Six Hours Lost, Land Between the Lakes by Kathleen Driskell

    Today’s poem is Six Hours Lost, Land Between the Lakes by Kathleen Driskell. This episode was originally released on October 8, 2025. The Slowdown is your daily poetry ritual. In this episode, Maggie writes… “Today’s poem tells a story about a tense encounter in the woods. I so admire how this poet unfolds the narrative, then leaves me sighing deeply at the end.” This show is supported by gifts from listeners. Support The Slowdown with a donation today. Slowdownshow.org/donate

Showing 1–20 of 72 episodes