Poems of Middle Age, Mourning, Loss and Dementia

Laurie Block is a poet, playwright, professional storyteller and seasoned performer.

He was born in Winnipeg and lives in Brandon Manitoba. We were pleased to feature Laurie's poem "Coming to my Senses" in our September 06 issue of the CCAHTE Journal.

In the foreword to Laurie's moving, honest and luminous collection of poems,"Time out of Mind" he inscribes the last coherent words his mother said to him,

"I used to be quite fond of you." Shortly after that.. she lost what remained of her senses and sank into the vegetative state in which she spent her last years. Many of these poems are rooted in disorientation, displacement and loss of equilibrium, the friction between what happens outside the skin and what may be taking place on the inside. Laurie Block suggests we value consciousness as somehow more concrete, enduring and linked to assumptions about identity than our bodies. He therefore asks the question. Is the self first a face or a soul?

We are pleased to announce "Time Out of Mind" has recently been shortlisted for The McNally

Robinson Manitoba Book of the Year Award and the Inaugural Landsdowne Poetry Prize.

You will find Laurie Block's complete poem, "Coming to My Senses"

in your free September archived issue of CCAHTE Journal at http://www.cmclean.com/.

This valuable issue also contains information and full articles about "The Poetry of Practice"

and using poetry in Medical Education. Register free for CCAHTE Journal at ccahte@cmclean.com with an email "please subscribe".

Be sure to join Laurie Block and hear more about the stories of his poetry and his work in an upcoming post. We look forward to welcoming Laurie Block to our CCAHTE Blog Crossing Borders as this week's featured artist "in conversation".

Laurie Block Wins Landsdowne Prize for Poetry, Poems of Middle Age, Mourning and Loss

Artist News

We recently received news that Manitoba poet Laurie Block won the Inaugural Landsdowne Prize for Poetry at the Manitoba Writing and Publishing Awards Gala for his collection "Time out of Mind." The book of poetry has also been short listed for the McNally Robinson Book of the Year Award.

See "Crossing Borders" posts about Laurie Block and Poetry

http://ccahtecrossingborders.blogspot.com/search?q=Laurie+Block

Laurie Block website:

http://www.laurieblock.ca/

Poetry About Memory, Dementia and Search for Identity, Post from Laurie Block

"The poem, Coming to My Senses, came to me, uncharacteristically, complete and nearly finished during a walk along the banks of the Seine River in Old Saint Boniface, the Franco Manitobain quarter of Winnipeg. It struck me as a "keystone" poem; one upon which the integrity of the entire manuscript depended. I knew immediately that it was either the introductory piece, or as it turned out, the final poem in Time Out Of Mind, a collection that explores memory, dementia and the search for healing and identity."Coming to My Senses stands not as an end but a new beginning, the first steps on the path of a transformation in consciousness. Memory and the sense of self depend on our capacity to honour, preserve and amplify the web of relationships that hold our lives intact. Without memory our connections, to self and to other; to the planet and to our gods, become unsustainable. In turning and returning to our senses we become able to express, kindle and experience love from the moment of birth to our final breath.It was an honour to have "Coming To My Senses" reprinted for a wider audience in the September 2006 edition of the CCAHTE Journal. Now I am thrilled to have my book recognized by my peers in the poetry circle. I'll let you know the results as soon as they are in."
Laurie

More Info about "Time Out of Mind" and Laurie Block
http://www.laurieblock.ca/

photo C. McLean

Read poem "Coming to my Senses" in free September 06 Issue CCAHTE
"The Poetry of Practice"
at http://www.cmclean.com/ archived issues.

Guest Post Sunday April 29, 2007
Laurie Block

Good news. I have been shortlisted for two prizes at the Manitoba
Writing and Publishing Awards annual do. It was an honour to be
considered for the McNally Robinson book of the year and
an absolute thrill to win the inaugural Landsdowne Poetry Prize.

My cup is full.Laurie

Bravo, Laurie! Great to hear this news and congratulations,
Cheryl.

Dance DVD Explores Key Issues in Palliative Care

News about new projects in arts and health from our CCAHTE subscribers

DVD "Carry Me Home" Uses Movement to Explore Illness, Healing and Consolation

We heard recently from Brenda Cantelo Ph.D., Department of Religion, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg about her dance film, “Carry Me Home.” Brenda specializes in religion and the arts with an emphasis on dance. She choreographed and filmed a dance performance which developed out of a project for Manitoba Artists in Healthcare inspired by her volunteer experiences in palliative care at St. Boniface Hospital. The performance interprets key issues in palliative care such as fear, loneliness, struggle, love, caring and family.

Brenda reported the dances in the video were influenced by authentic movement techniques. She explains, “only after being witnessed or having one’s own experiences validated is one able to see oneself authentically and find one’s voice.”

She describes the work as a journey from fear to security. “By portraying the patient as transitioning from fear to security, the video allows the audience to move vicariously with the patient through illness to a deeper sense of self and connection to others. When one recognizes one’s situation, story and place, even in the re-constructed world of the imagination, one’s sense of self, both in the social and personal sense is reclaimed.”

For more information or to contact Brenda Cantelo about the DVD “Carry Me Home” cantelo@ms.umanitoba.ca

The poem "Coming to My Senses" by award winning Manitoba poet Laurie Block is also featured in the performance.

Read more about Laurie Block and his poetry at:

http://ccahtecrossingborders.blogspot.com/2007/04/in-conversation-with-manitoba-poet.html