Parker J Palmer

May 12, 2025

“Why Should I Ever Be Sad” by Parker J. Palmer Guest Reader Keith Smith

Note: in the afterward I leave out the word “ever” in the title. Continue reading

Afterward, Guest Voice, SherPoetryEpisode

Parker J Palmer

About Me

I’m a retired Humanities professor, published essayist, poet, painter, singer, and old-time fiddle musician living on an historic two-hundred-acre farm in Eastern Oregon. I plant gardens for pollinators and revel in insects, bird dogs, donkeys, goats, cats, and American fantail and roller pigeons. My lyric landscapes are oak savannah, prairie, and riparian. Writing poetry gives me a way to express and question the rhythms I hear. My chapbook The Beautiful One’s Ark (2024) is available through The Poetry Box and online bookstores. Sher Poetry celebrates poetry as an oral language art. Each week I’ll share a poem from some of my work or from that of other poets who I love to hear.

Parker J Palmer

“Why Should I Ever Be Sad” by Parker J. Palmer Guest Reader Keith Smith