#CW Suicide – I wrote a poem, Living with Dead Poets, for the talented New Zealand poet, Paula Harris, who died by suicide a year ago. I’m glad it has a home in Anti-Heroin Chic and am grateful to James Diaz for publishing it. Most of the poem is in conversation with Paula’s poems including the title. Leading up to her death, she had become discouraged about publishing and was posting on Instagram about her disappointments. One of her unpublished manuscripts was called If Prince Can’t Fuck in Heaven, There is No God. She published a great poem about Prince. She wrote without filters, and I think she’d appreciate the raunchiness of this. I miss her and miss her writing. I hope whoever got it finds a way to get it published.
Paula had severe depression, and meds didn’t work on her. Americans, especially, like to think Western medicine can cure everything. The sad reality is, for some people, they just aren’t effective. I wish there had been help for her. I wish a lot of things, including that she was here, but I’m glad we have some of her work to remember her by.
Find links to Paula’s work on her website including some collaborative projects she did with a filmmaker.
