paul bluestein poetry
Paul Bluestein is a physician (done practicing), a blues guitar player (still practicing), and a dedicated Scrabble player (yes, ZAX is a word). He was born and raised in Philadelphia but has also lived in the Midwest and southern California. He currently lives in Connecticut and is fortunate to live near bodies of water of varying sizes which provide him quiet places to think about the past, wonder about the future, and lose his sunglasses. More about Paul:
I live near Long Island Sound where I’ve often walked early in the morning. It’s the place where I can let my mind off the leash to run free. So far, it has always returned, sometimes with an interesting idea in its jaws.
Throughout high school, I disliked poets and poetry, the hills of meter, form, and abstract metaphors were difficult to climb and, most often, didn’t seem worth the effort. Nonetheless, I eventually found men and women who wrote accessible poems about ordinary people and experiences made extraordinary through the power of words.
The world is a remarkable place, but too often we are blind to the things happening all around us. Everyday events can become like wallpaper ~ until someone holds them up and says, “Look at this!” At its best, poetry does just that.
Paul has just released his newest collection by Silver Bow Publishing titled, Midnight Moonlight. His previous collection Time Passages (Silver Bow Publishing, 2020) won First Prize in the Book of Poetry Category at the 2020 Connecticut Press Club Awards. This collection was followed by Fade to Black (Silver Bow Publishing) in 2021.
MIDNIGHT MOONLIGHT (Silver Bow Publishing, 2026)
Silver Bow Publishing describes Midnight Moonlight as an emotive and entrancing collection of poems by award winning poet paul Bluestein. This is Paul’s third book of poetry and as one wanders through the pages, emotions and memories are called to the forefront of one’s mind.
Excerpt from “Leaning Tree 1753 -”: The mottled sycamore in the side yard / might have been there long before the saltbox was built. / When she was young, she may have stood straight and strong, / a ballerina, arms up, fingers outstretched. / But now she inclines toward the house / as if trying to peek in the kitchen window / like a weary grandmother, bent over by the burdens / she has carried in her arms for so many years - / snow and winter ice, spring birds’ nests and autumn leaves. / How the three hasn’t fallen is a mystery. / Maybe it’s sheer stubbornness, a refusal to lie down and die, / I don’t know, but as I watch her / wage her contest against gravity and endure, / I, nearing my eightieth year, feel a little more / rooted to this earth.
FADE TO BLACK (Silver Bow Publishing, 2021)
This collection of poetry reaches deep into the soul and massages it to a soothing shine that warms the heart and illuminates the mind. There is a gentle weave that runs throughout, laced with an evocative eloquence that almost turns the pages by themselves. There is something living in these words that paul Bluestein has spilled onto the papers of time and the waters of life.
Excerpt from “A Short Walk at Sunset”: The old man and his old dog walk slowly, / their autumn shadows stretched out long / ahead of them. // For now though, there will be shared food, / the evening news, and time to rest / in the chair by the window / while he watches his old dog’s flank / rise and fall with each breath.
Excerpt from “Pale and No Wings to Fly”: I feel like I could rest here / forever in the fading light / and I want to tell my wife, / kneeling beside me, / but the lowering sky pressing / down on my chest has left me breathless. // Besides, I’m not sure she would hear me / over the wail of the approaching sirens.
There are many passages in these poems that will tug at your heartstrings and bring tears to your eyes. This is a book that gets the reader in touch with that still small part of the soul that defines who one is.
~ Candace James, Poet Laureate Emerita, New Westminster, BC Canada; Author of “Rithimus Aeternam” and “The Path of Loneliness”