Jim Harrison's Poetry Celebrated in Complete Poems as Essay Recalls 1968 CCLM Panel

Jim Harrison, a celebrated novelist, short-story writer, screenwriter, food enthusiast, woodsman, Michigander, and globetrotter, always viewed poetry as his primary passion. His poem 'A glimpse of sun.' was first published in The Theory & Practice of Rivers in 1986 and later featured in his Complete Poems, released by Copper Canyon Press in 2021. Sinclair Beiles, a South African poet, remarked that 'poetry is a way of committing suicide,' a sentiment the essayist finds extreme yet poignant, suggesting that profound beauty often emerges from deep despair, a common aspiration among poets. The author met Harrison once in 1968 during a 'little magazine' panel with Russell Banks, Anne Waldman, and Charles Newman, led by Partisan Review editor William Phillips, where they selected that year's grant recipients for the Coordinating Council of Literary Magazines (CCLM) at the Wingspread prairie house in Racine, Wisconsin. Even back then, Harrison was a memorable figure, characterized by a black patch over his blind left eye, a tilted straw hat, and a hand-carved walking stick. The author now perceives himself as the runt of the litter, a contrast to his past self. This essay reflects on Harrison’s illustrious career and the lasting charm of his poetry.