Update from the Author: Early June 2023

Dearest Friends, Family, Fellow Authors, and Cherished Readers,

I am delighted to announce that my poem, “Still Life with Roses,” was recently published in the Sunlight Press.

Please allow me to take this opportunity to thank editors Beth Burrell and Rudri Bhatt Patel for believing in my work.

I’d also like to thank everyone in my literary circles and communities who provided feedback on the first draft of this piece; you know who you are, and you are so very valued. I am a better writer and author because of my mentors, pen-pals, peers, and friends in the literary community. You inspire me and encourage me to strive for greatness.

As a relatively young poet, I appreciate each and every opportunity I am granted to share my work with the world – though I truly do stand on the shoulders of giants.

I do have one final person to thank. This time, I’d like to extend my most heartfelt gratitude to my late grandmother – who printed out everything I ever wrote and sent to her, even before it was any good. I discovered after she passed that she’d printed out at least a full ream of paper worth of my writing. She didn’t do this to read it; on the contrary, she preferred reading online. She just loved me so much and was so proud of me, that she wanted to show her friends. It’s been almost seven years since her passing, but I feel her presence as a constant balm on my soul, and I carry the memories of her in the most sacred spaces of my heart. Thank you, Grandma, wherever you might be – for believing in me, before the world, before I even believed in myself.

For those of you looking for context for “Still Life with Roses,” I firmly believe that a poem – any poem – becomes more than the sum of its parts once it becomes a dialogue between the poet and their readers. I want my readers to be able to see themselves in the poem, no matter who they might be.

That being said, I’d like to note that this poem is true. Rather: it is my truth, even though some parts of the piece are metaphorical, fantastical, speculative, or otherwise seem like fiction. Although some creative liberties have been taken, this poem represents, to me at least, a great and lasting truth about the start of a relationship, the ending of that love, and the things we carry with us, even when the other person had departed; yet we remain.

I sincerely hope you enjoy the poem. Read it and share it widely. Leave a comment if it moved you. Thank you all, and – as always – may inspiration find you in unexpected places.

Caitlin Cacciatore