Eagle Feathers #289 – The Season of the Witch

By Bob (Monty) Doherty

It was considered a time of year when both good spirits, evil spirits and ghosts flourished. Bonfires were lit. Masks were made. Jack-o-lanterns were carved out, and witches were said to have haunted the skies on brooms. Halloween, the last day of October and the day before the Christian holy day of All Saints Day had its origin in ancient Celtic lore. Most of these fables and myths never crossed the ocean, but unfortunately some took root here.

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Interview by New England Poetry Club Co-President Doug Holder

I recently caught up with poet Daniel Tobin to discuss his new book of poetry The Mansions. From the publisher’s website (Four Way Books):

From award-winning poet Daniel Tobin comes The Mansions, an epic trilogy of book-length poems which examines exemplary 20th Century figures Georges Lemaître, Simone Weil, and Teilhard de Chardin, all at the crossroads of science, history, and religion. Capacious in their philosophical explorations, immaculate in their form, stirring in their alchemy of faith and empiricism, each complete section works both autonomously and as part of the whole, building a house that contains many mansions, simulating the dynamic enormity of creation itself – always already entire and yet unfinished, borderless, infinite. Immersed in a time when cataclysmic geopolitical events coincided with revolutionary scientific progress, The Mansions charts a Dantean journey as it confronts the exigencies and contingencies which define modernity: history, religion, our planet’s fate, and the purpose of humankind.

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Mary Buchinger is the author of seven collections of poetry; her most recent books are Navigating the Reach (Salmon Poetry, 2023) and Virology (Lily Poetry Review Books, 2022); The Book of Shores is forthcoming. Her work has appeared in AGNI, Maine Review, Plume, Salamander, Salt Hill, Seneca Review, and elsewhere. She teaches at the Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences and serves on the board of the New England Poetry Club. Website: www.MaryBuchinger.com.

From Left to Right: John Smith-St. Cyere of Camfield Estates, Jessica Cantin, the new CEO of Food For Free, and Justice Kumahia of Bunker Hill Community College. ~Photo by D. J. Baker

Last week, more than 300 supporters, donors, and community members gathered for Party Under the Harvest Moon, hosted by Food For Free. The annual event raised $170,000 to support the nonprofit’s year-round food rescue and redistribution efforts in 27 communities across Eastern Massachusetts.

Somerville Police Department  is looking for information related to a pedestrian accident. This incident took place on September 15,2023 at the intersection of Pearl St. and Marshall St.
Anyone with information is asked to contact Officer Joseph Teves at 617-625-1600 ext. 7248 or 617-702-6852.

A Game-changing prelude to Somerville’s Public Tavern
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The Artsy Bites Challenge, brought to life by The Public Tavern, a soon-to-be-unveiled arcade bar in Somerville, invites locals and art enthusiasts on a scavenger hunt to discover and celebrate the city’s rich tapestry of diverse public art.

Francis John Leland, 75, of Somerville, MA, passed away on September 29, 2023 at the hospital in Burlington, MA. He was born on February 16, 1948, to the late Wilbur Leland and Francesca Ghilarducci Leland. Frank was raised in Somerville, graduated from SHS, and proudly lived in the same home in Somerville since he was 9 years old.

Councilor Willie Burnley Jr, supported by Somerville residents, advances a resolution backing the advocacy of currently and formerly incarcerated women to pass a prison and jail construction moratorium bill. Read the resolution here.

On Thursday, September 28, Somerville became the first municipality in Massachusetts to make a clear statement of support for a five year pause on new prison and jail construction in the state.