Galway and Sharon

I came across this photo in a box of old pictures from the 1990s. This is a photo I took of poets Galway Kinnell and Sharon Olds back in 1996 at the Brook Farm Inn in Lenox, MA.

One of the perks of the NYU graduate creative writing program was that the administration arranged a weekend workshop at this inn that claims to be the only poetry inn in the U.S. I was a first-year student at the time, and to have the chance to work so closely and intimately with them is something I'll never forget.

Galway and Sharon have always been close, as you can see in this picture. Along with Phil Levine, they were my example of how to live in this world as a poet. I admired (and still admire) their dedication to craft, as well as their respect for fellow poets. They were generous with their time, and patient with all of us who wanted their attention.

Galway is 80 now and no longer teaching at NYU, but Sharon still teaches there; although, I don't think they still do this weekend retreat. (Twelve college students spending the we together--I don't think so.) I'm just grateful to have this memory, and to be able to share this experience with you.