Reuben Jackson (1956–2024)

Reuben Jackson was a beloved, under-the-radar-famous figure in two very different places. Known in Vermont for his Friday Night Jazz radio show, Jackson was also much beloved by Washington DC's African American poetry community. In both states, his knowledge, warmth, humor, and generosity were legendary. His final book of poems is a testament to all elements of who he was. How generous is it to give over a section of his own book to another, under-recognized poet, as Jackson does here for show more Kelly Donaldson?

In addition to the Donaldson section, My Specific Awe and Wonder also features poems about the author's life and sometimes unpleasant encounters in Vermont, and a verse travelogue of his journeys - the strongest section of the book. With drafts, his final voice mail and poem, and appreciations by poets and Rootstock Press's publisher Samantha Kolber, My Specific Awe and Wonder is a love song by and to a poet and mentor gone much too soon. show less

This book of poems is special. Reading it, one feels like a child peeking into the closet where Christmas gifts are hidden, and upon finding each one, the eyes widen in wonder. In less than fifty pages the slim volume is filled with poignant experiences of his life. The writing is sparse and powerful, and it resonates with the reader regardless of one’s own experiences. His love of music, both jazz and classical, friendships, nature, childhood, and race are core. Poems such as “Long show more Distance Love express a life lived with contradictions as one does; yet, “Danish Sketches” speaks to the bewilderment experienced by any one of color when race does not matter with first impressions.

The publishers have honored this Renaissance man from Georgia, Washington, D.C. and Vermont, who died in 2024, by including not only his own poetry formally crafted, but handwritten drafts alongside finished pieces, transcribed voicemails, and importantly a section honoring his soul friend. His brief biography will astound readers who are not familiar with his name. Proceeds from support an educational scholarship in his name at the University of the District of Columbia.

Simply put, reading these works is a must for young and old, any race, living in any place. show less

“My Specific Awe and Wonder” is a gem of a collection from the late Reuben Jackson. I appreciate the effort to see the book through to publication and commend Rootstock Publishing. The last page has a transcribed message and poem left as a voicemail that showcases the trickster and the earnestness of perhaps a young Mr. Jackson. His love of the land, of Vermont and her mountains, and the Adirondacks is front and center. He does not shy away from expressing how it feels to live with that show more “white man staring at him in the general store”; despite his LL Bean cords and plaid jacket, he is black man in a space dominated by whiteness. His ‘friend’ or persona, Kelly, contributes a few of his “better poems” to the collection. In Kelly Writes, I keep my head / On swivel / So I (hopefully) / Don’’t become / Black history / In this / Or any other / Month. Reading at times I laughed out loud, shook my head, cringed, smiled and felt welcomed into an extraordinary life. Poems are lyrically creative and pack a punch. /He’s stuffing the jukebox / As if it is a collection plate at the church of Ferlin Husky (Country Music). The speaker defines himself in his new environ… /The first colored person / Ever to attend / Thanksgiving Venison extravaganza. / (East Montpelier) but there is a personal affinity for the place and I think, the people, too, when he quotes from the locals /The salesclerk claimed that the snow fell / With a Vermont accent/ (East Barre) because ultimately /the weather owned my eyes/. The last portion of the book includes transcriptions from handwritten poems. Photos of the original writings adds another layer of sweetness to the publication overall, reminding me of similar attempts with notes on envelopes of what would have been otherwise lost words of Emily Dickinson. show less

I had a bit of difficulty with this book of poetry. Some of it was over my head, either because I did not know to what the author was referring or from simply not being a part of the world of jazz as I've been hard of hearing for over twenty years. This author's life (and consequently his poetry) are largely entrenched in the world of jazz. For the poems that dealt with race or my beloved city of Washington, DC, I really loved the understated way Jackson made his thoughts known.

Here are two show more poems that definitely spoke to me.

-------------

Coming Back Home
(Washington, D.C., spring 2018)

Walk down
A formerly black street--

One which is now
Whiter than northern New England

Yet the gradation of light
Knows you

As does the breeze
Humid as longing

They hold you

Like her hands did
Once

----------

If You Met My Mother

She would be warm
And a bit nervous

Eyes darting between
The white stranger

In love with her baby

And some semi-distant space
Between us

She who worried about my love life
(In high school and beyond)
Would find herself wrestling with race

While seeking a smile
Sturdy enough to last through

The pot roast she checks
Every other breath

Until silently
Stubbornly concluding

That this might
Be all right show less