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Dear Readers:
…..The poet Juan Mobili, whose work has frequently appeared on the pages of Jerry Jazz Musician, has informed me that he has been appointed Poet Laureate of Rockland County (New York), where he has lived for over 30 years.
…..I have admired Juan’s poetry since he first began submitting it a couple years ago, and nominated his poem “Nina & Maria Esther” (below) for the 2024 Pushcart Prize.
…..A wonderful clip concerning his appointment as Poet Laureate can be seen by clicking here.
…..Congratulations, Juan!
Joe Maita
Editor/Publisher
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Nina & Maria Esther
…………….For Maria Esther Mobili & Nina Simone
Both of them put up with fools
until they didn’t
and the sea that men parted
collapsed under their stares.
I don’t know if Nina
would have liked
my mother but
I know my mother
would have not
taken that kindly
They were both storms,
twin volcanoes ready
to level off Pompeii,
wounded birds
that made predators nervous,
firm,
sad,
flames,
hymns inside me,
long red fingernails,
unforgiving lava.
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Listen to Juan Mobili read his poem
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This poem was first published on Jerry Jazz Musician on February 3, 2024
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Juan Pablo Mobili was born in Argentina. His poems appeared in The American Journal of Poetry, Hanging Loose Press, Paterson Literary Review, among others, as well as many journals around the world. He received multiple nominations for the Pushcart Prize, and his chapbook, Contraband, was published in 2022.
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Listen to the 1967 recording of Nina Simone performing “Keeper of the Flame” [Universal Music Group]
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Photo of Nina Simone/Gerrit de Bruin, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons; Photo of Maria Esther courtesy of Juan Mobili
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Click for:
More poetry on Jerry Jazz Musician
“Bluesette,” Salvatore Difalco’s winning story in the 67th Jerry Jazz Musician Short Fiction Contest
More short fiction on Jerry Jazz Musician
Information about how to submit your poetry or short fiction
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Jerry Jazz Musician…human produced since 1999
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