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I’m delighted to share that my poem “The Sparrows Shake Me, Wake Me” was published in Beyond the Veil Press’s new disability pride poetry, essay, & art anthology, In Praise of Despair.

To purchase: a.co/d/jiG0Rqg

#crippoetry #crippower #DiabilityPride #disabledpoets #disabilitypoetry #poetry
A photo of my poem in the book, which says “The Sparrows Shake Me, Wake Me After Mary Oliver M.S. Marquart   My body and I have endured a thousand humiliations; I was crying at the most recent, when suddenly a house sparrow swooped past my window, landing in the soil below. Then like lightning it flew onto a tree branch, trading places with its fellow. The winged messenger quickly drew my eyes to dozens of sparrows, brown bodies flitting from tree to tree, rolling in the earth, hopping in the tall grass, black beaks pecking at invisible treasures, voices chirping incessantly.      I realized that the winter’s bare branches had sprouted leaves, that the magnolias and cherry blossoms in the distance were starting to bloom, that daffodils and crocuses were springing up, bunches of hope.    You do not need to be able-bodied to merit a share in the joys of life. You can be disabled, struggle through each day, unable to leave home, unable to work, unable to be physically present for loved ones’ birthdays, recitals, graduations, weddings -- and you can still taste nature’s beauty and delights.   Outside the open window: bright clouds floating in a sunny blue sky, intensified leaf and petal colors on grey days, luscious floral scents drifting on the breeze, a carpet of green ferns swaying in the wind like ocean waves.   The sparrows’ demanding cheeping, peeping, shrieking shout at me, as if to shake me, wake me out of a haze, remind me that the world’s love is for every creature, as we float through the cosmos together.” A photo of the cover of the book, which says “Beyond the Veil Press In Praise of Despair disability pride poetry, essay, & art anthology” The cover is set on a disability pride flag as the background, with diagonal stripes in muted red, yellow, white, blue, green, and charcoal gray. There’s an image of two hands making a heart with their thumbs and pointer fingers; one hand is an x-ray of a hand and the other hand is a white hand. Behind the white hand, there is a letter sealed with a heart that has a medical heartbeat symbol running across the middle. This artwork is by Raika Sailing. A flyer for the book, which says “IN PRAISE OF DESPAIR Disability Pride Anthology Available Now @BEYONDTHEVEILPRESS” and includes an image of the book cover and the Beyond the Veil Press logo Mr. Bitey (designed by Josiah Callaway), which looks like the head of a smiling black cat, all in a pale yellow box on top of the disability pride flag.
August 25, 2025 at 10:58 AM