I had the honor of performing among a group of super talented fellow poets in Benicia, CA for “Why Poetry?” and Fairfield, CA for “Why Poetry Matters” for National Poetry Month to support two good causes: The Joel Fallon Poetry Scholarship and Solano County Library Foundation Literacy Programs.

The poem “Libraries Ignite Universes” was written for the Solano County Library system and was originally published on their Facebook page earlier this month, and is in my new book Resting on My Laurels. The poem Why Poetry Matters I wrote for the Fairfield event. I read both of these in Benicia, and then again in Fairfield as part of a larger set on the theme of libraries, which also included reciting “Poetic Timing” and reading “What is a Poet?” from Poet Loiterer, “Unbound” and “What A Gift You Have Given Me!” which also appear in Resting on my Laurels.

Why Poetry Matters by D.L. Lang

Poetry, that ineffable waterfall of words,
thoughts dripping from minds to pages,
from daydreams to stages.

So quickly its prophets
are often condemned as unprofitable,
so what value is there to poetry
if monetization is not the metric of measure
that defines this sacred treasure?

It, like most art,
can reach directly into hearts.
It can repair them.
It can break them.
It can change them.

It can shatter the divisions
between peoples,
reaching across boundaries,
sprouting shared experience,
educating others about each other.

It can give voice to the voiceless,
comfort the hurting,
uplift the despondent,
and accompany the lonely.

It is a cornerstone of other art forms,
transforming itself into song lyrics,
treasured quotes of wisdom,
spoken word and comedy performance,
film and commercial narration,
and bite size bits of prayer and meditation.

It can make you cry tears of catharsis,
it can make you laugh until you cry,
it can change your life with an idea,
it can change the world,

if we only try.

Libraries Ignite Universes by D.L. Lang

The library, she is a magic place!
Towering from floor to ceiling
stands all the wisdom in the universe,
collected for centuries,
freely available,
ready for curious minds
to immerse themselves
in the endless knowledge
that graces her shelves.
Escape into her peaceful sanctuary,
wherein her quiet, yourself, you’ll find,
as you unite with the finest minds.

Each page sparks journeys anew
with every volume hoping to inspire
imaginations of all persuasions,
as each new generation
of readers, teachers, and writers,
seekers, lovers, scholars, and fighters,
shall one day build upon
the sacred foundation
of her treasures
with contributions of their own,
extending far beyond these walls,
opening up a world just as magical,
igniting possibility.

Resting on my Laurels

$9.99eBook: $5.99

Author: D.L. Lang
Series: Poetry Paperbacks, Book 10
Genre: Poetry
Publication Year: 2018
Length: 130 pages / 86 poems
ASIN: 1983939773
ISBN: 9781983939778

Resting on my Laurels contains poetry written, performed, and published during D.L. Lang's tenure as the 2nd Poet Laureate of Vallejo in addition to other never before seen poems.

About the Book

Resting on my Laurels contains 86 poems including many written, performed, and published during D.L. Lang’s tenure as the 2nd Poet Laureate of Vallejo. It contains such favorites as “Ancestral Honor”, “Millennium Vision”, “Use Elevator to Exit Reality”, “Train Whistle Polka”, “Benicia Bound”, “Love Poetry Capital Blockade”, “Visions,” “Vallejo, California,” “Elegant Stag,” “Little Watercraft,” “Listen!” and many, many more written and performed in 2017-2018. Read poetry posted on the blog from Resting on my Laurels. Local bookstores and libraries often provide venues for poets and local authors, and many of them have invited me to read over the years, so when possible, please shop local! Any bookstore should be able to special order it for you using the ISBN, so please utilize your local independent bookshop. List Price: $9.99 5.06″ x 7.81″ (12.852 x 19.837 cm) Black & White on White paper 130 pages ISBN-13: 978-1983939778 ISBN-10: 1983939773 BISAC: Poetry / Women Authors Smashwords ISBN: 9780463718933 Smashwords makes ebooks compatible with all major e-reading devices in .mobi, .epub, .pdf, .lrf, .pdb, and plain text formats. The ebook is also available through Apple Books, Barnes & Noble, Scribd, Kobo, and Kindle. Also available to libraries through OverDrive, Baker & Taylor Axis 360, Tolino, Gardners (Askews & Holts and Browns Books for Students), Bibliotheca CloudLibrary, Odilo and Califa’s Enki. Complete list of poems included in this volume: Rebel Verse Know Hey, Daydreamer Mandatory Vacation Dust Storms May Exist Woody Living Lyrics Orion Taking a Trip on the Mother Road A New Day Stars What’s in a Hat? For My Favorite Hobo Resting on my Laurels To My Favorite Protest Singer Wandering Stars Offerings Buried Treasure Disarmed Terms of Endearment Reunion How Here This Isn’t Rays of Hope Afflatus Read the Signs Mind Blown Dancing A Single Heart Bibliophile There is Always Good News Solidarity Salutes Metaphor Clear-headed Underwater Back Catalogue Upward Spirals Why D.L.? That which the Realtor cannot Itemize To the Tenth Generation My Soul’s Citizenship The Storm Shall Pass The Missing The Lottery of Birth I’m Tired of Waking Up in 1933! Why??? In These Times The Time Has Come Xennial Luddite Occupational Hazards Fascinations Firestorm Secondary Sorrows Inevitably of Existence Performance Anxiety It Ain’t What it Seems Highway Snobbery In Times of Action What 3 Words? Delayed Response State of the Poet Pain Relief Fame The Gallows of Public Opinion The River Beliefs Visions Vallejo, California Charlottesville Ancestral Honor Millennium Vision Unbound Little Watercraft Dreaming of Better Days Elegant Stag Players Ignite Listen! What A Gift You Have Given Me! Use Elevator to Exit Reality Wrapping It Up For Newman Train Whistle Polka Love Poetry Capital Blockade Benicia Bound Libraries Ignite Universes

Hi! Enjoying what you’re reading? Please consider buying a book, or using the donation button on the sidebar. Poets aren’t always compensated for our performances and efforts, and doing so would help out greatly and ensure this website stays around for years to come.

All of my gigs have been cancelled until further notice. Please stay safe everyone. If you would like to support me at this time, please consider buying one of my books from your favorite online retailer.

About the Author

D.L. Lang

D.L. Lang is a contemporary American poet and spoken word artist. The author of over a dozen poetry books, Lang has been writing poetry for over 25 years. She has performed her poetry on stage hundreds of times at protest rallies, county fairs, literary festivals, open mics, poetry circles, bookstores, libraries, and live radio broadcasts.

From 2017 to 2019 she served as Vallejo, California's Poet Laureate. Her poems have been awarded with numerous county fair ribbons, transformed into songs, used as liturgy for prayer, and to advocate for peace, justice, and a better world.

The scribe of over 1,200 poems from haiku to free verse to masterful rhyme, covering a wide variety of topics, D.L. Lang has poetry that's sure to delight. Lang dabbles in both gritty realism and surrealistic wordplay, sorrowful elegy and uplifting affirmations. Her poetry is a mixture of topical political commentary, religious devotional meditations, and poetic autobiographical memoir. Her words take you on journeys deep into nature, memory, spirituality, and the whisperings of the heart.

She is the author of Tea & Sprockets, Abundant Sparks & Personal Archeology, Look Ma! No Hands!, Poet Loiterer, Id Biscuits, Barefoot in the Sanctuary, Armor Against The Dawn, Dragonfly Tomorrows & Dog-eared Yesterdays, Resting on My Laurels, The Cafe of Dreams, Midnight Strike, and This Festival of Dreams. She has also released a chapbook compilation entitled Wanderings, a Jewish poetry compilation entitled Paradise Collectors, and her debut spoken word album entitled Happy Accidents, and is the editor of Voices, Verses & Visions of Vallejo.

Her poetry has also been published in the Benicia Herald, Poets Are Heroes Magazine, ReformJudaism.org, Poetry Expressed, Frost Meadow Review, and the Jewish Journal of Los Angeles. Her poetry has been anthologized in A Poet’s Siddur (Ain’t Got No Press, 2017), Light & Shadow (Benicia Literary Arts, 2018), Marin Poetry Center Anthology, Vol. 21 (2018), and Verses, Voices & Visions of Vallejo (2019).

Look Inside

Disclosure of Material Connection: Some of the links in the page above are "affiliate links." This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive an affiliate commission. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."

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Two poems for National Poetry Month 2018

Resting on my Laurels

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