Words & remembrance: Latest edition of Fixed and Free Quarterly pays tribute to two poets

The December 2023 issue of Albuquerque-based Fixed and Free Quarterly is dedicated to two poets who died earlier in the year — E.T. “Mess” Messal of Rio Rancho and Paul Woodruff of Austin, Texas.

“… both dealt boldly and bravely with their illnesses, enormously creative and productive until their end, and both have posthumous books forthcoming,” writes Billy Brown, the editor and publisher of the quarterly, in the introduction.

The issue has more than a brief dedication to Messal and Woodruff.

There are odes to the two men, reprints of their published obituaries and a number of pages of their own poetry, giving you the feel and flavor of their writings.

Here’s a section of Messal’s poem “Your Damned Day,” displaying his raucous rhyming talent: “Get the puzzle glut / of woe outta the way / and the rest of your day play / your fave. Tunes, fave ’toons. / Try playin’ the bassoon. / Twirl ’round the room, spoon prunes to a / Babblin’ baboon, surf a lagoon or even a dune, / blow up and bounce balloons, / harpoon then maroon a tycoon, / begin commune, / glad-hand-up / all your gloom.”

Here is a piece of a long paragraph from Woodruff’s pensive, hopeful essay on death and dying: “What project is worth living for? Not a project I could complete today. Worthwhile projects spread out over time. … I will make sure that the last day for this essay will be the first day for something else. Thinking of death, I want to live every day as if it were the first of something.”

Words & remembrance: Latest edition of Fixed and Free Quarterly pays tribute to two poets

One ode of special note is the touching “For Paul and Mess” by Santa Fe poet-artist Kathamann: “Where do words go / when poets die? / Do they take them with them? / Writing in air and wind / Composing in loam and compost / We may hear them reading / if we’re especially quiet / Without a mic, without an audience / Themselves the epitome of poetry / Prolonging the lineage until we get there.”

The focus is on Messal and Woodruff for the first one-fourth of the quarterly.

The next 100 pages of the volume contain poetry by many writers and a short story with a fantastical element, titled “Kitty,” by Albuquerque resident Robert J. Weber.

Then there’s a short essay section, in which Weber returns, analyzing for himself and anyone interested how his creative process works.

That’s followed by a reviews section. Brown (he is also a poet) reviews two of Woodruff’s poetry books here, Lenora Rain-Lee Good reviews books of poems by six different writers, Albuquerque’s Merimée Moffitt reviews the heartfelt anthology “Up from the Ashes We Rise,” which are mostly reflections on the loss and sorrow caused by the Hermit’s Peak/Calf Canyon fire and the need to rebuild and heal, and Bill Nevins reviews “The New Mexico Poetry Anthology 2023.”

Inside the quarterly is also, for the first time, a review of a musical album. In this case, it is folksinger-songwriter Eliza Gilkyson’s album “Secularia” reviewed by Nevins — all six pages of it. His review was originally published in the online magazine No Depression five years ago.

The back of the book is a calendar of upcoming events of many New Mexico poetry organizations, including Fixed and Free’s monthly readings via Zoom. The next one is at 6:30 p.m. Jan. 25. Featured poets for the reading are Joe Sorenson of Albuquerque and Marietta Leis of Santa Fe. Open mic slots may be available. Readings are held the third Thursday of the month.

Email Brown at welbert53@aol.com or call him at 505-401-8139 if you are interested in signing up for an available open mic slot, want to be a Zoom audience member, want to learn how poems are included in the quarterly or want to purchase copies of the quarterly.