Episode Title:
Maril Crabtree's Morning News: Poetry on Loving Life Despite World Horrors, Resilience, and Choosing to Stay
Episode Description:
In this episode of Midweek Pause for Peace, host Laura Davis shares Maril Crabtree's brief but powerful poem that captures the paradox of loving life fiercely even as we witness endless suffering. Through carefully selected imagery paired with these essential lines, Laura explores how we sustain connection to beauty and meaning despite being surrounded by terrible things. This episode offers support for anyone struggling to balance awareness of world suffering with personal joy, seeking poetry that honors both witness and resilience, or looking for language that affirms our right to love life even in dark times.
What Laura Covers in This Episode:
How Crabtree's precise calculation—"ten times ten thousand terrible things"—acknowledges the overwhelming scale of suffering without turning away from it or minimizing its reality
The radical act of the poem's pivot at "and still," which transforms awareness of horror into fierce attachment to life rather than despair or detachment
Why the simple declaration "I don't want to leave it" becomes an act of resistance and affirmation, choosing engagement with the world despite—or perhaps because of—its brokenness
The permission this poem offers to hold both grief for the world's suffering and deep love for being alive, modeling how we can be witnesses to injustice while still sustaining ourselves with joy and connection
About Host Laura Davis:
Laura Davis is an acclaimed author and writing teacher with over 35 years of experience helping writers craft powerful, authentic stories. She is the author of seven books, including the award-winning memoir "The Burning Light of Two Stars," which won the BookLife Prize in 2021. Laura is also co-author of the groundbreaking book "The Courage to Heal."
Through her Midweek Pause for Peace podcast series, Laura pairs carefully selected poetry with peaceful imagery to support listeners' emotional wellness and nervous system regulation.
Each week, host Laura Davis pairs beautiful imagery with meaningful poetry, offering listeners a respite for both heart and nervous system. These midweek pauses provide essential moments of reflection, healing, and inspiration in our complex world.
Perfect for: Anyone seeking Laura Davis' signature blend of poetry and peace, those managing stress and anxiety, and listeners who appreciate thoughtful, heart-centered content.
About the Featured Poet:
Maril Crabtree is an American poet who has called Kansas City home since the 1960s. A Pushcart Prize nominee, she views poetry as "the loom that weaves her life-threads together." Her work, including the full-length collection Fireflies in the Gathering Dark (Kelsay Books, 2017, named a Kansas Notable Book) and the chapbooks Dancing with Elvis, Moving On, and Tying the Light, balances witness to injustice—particularly environmental loss and suffering—with sustaining joy, humor, and spiritual depth.
Connect with Maril Crabtree: https://www.marilcrabtree.com
Connect with Laura Davis:
Join Laura's Community: Subscribe to Laura Davis' Midweek Pause for Peace series for consistent, nurturing content that honors both your need for beauty and your nervous system's need for calm.
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