The Slowdown: Poetry & Reflection Daily
Episode 1363: “Notes on Beachgrass” by Yong-Yu Huang
Host: Maggie Smith
Date: September 30, 2025
Episode Overview
In this episode, Maggie Smith reflects on the power of poetry to connect us with wonder, gratitude, and the natural world. She introduces and reads “Notes on Beachgrass” by Yong-Yu Huang, a poem that interweaves memories, nature, and longing. The episode centers on the feelings of insignificance and connection inspired by the ocean, and explores themes of familial bonds, searching, and the gravity of existence.
Key Discussion Points & Insights
The Transformative Power of Imagination
- Maggie describes missing the ocean this summer but transports herself there through memory and imagination.
- She evokes vivid sensory imagery: "I can hear the sound of the waves. I can see the pelicans flying in formation overhead… I can feel the wet sand beneath my feet." (03:40)
- She speaks about the ocean making her feel "small in the best way," not insignificant, but part of something larger and continuous beyond herself.
- "I'm reminded that I'm part of a whole and that this landscape existed before me and will exist after me." (04:26)
Wonder as a Practice
- Maggie identifies her “job as a poet and human being” as leaning toward wonder.
- She notes that poetry enables us to see familiar elements—the ocean, the moon, dreams, wounds, mothers—“in such a profoundly original and moving way.” (04:59)
- She shares her experience of rereading the poem several times, comparing it to walking the same beach and finding new treasures each time.
Introduction and Reading of the Poem
- Maggie introduces “Notes on Beachgrass,” highlighting its layered use of imagery and themes: the ocean, familial relationships, longing, and the body’s connection to nature.
- She reads the poem in full, allowing the listener to absorb the nuanced intermingling of sensory experience and emotional resonance.
Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments
-
"I love the ocean for how small it makes me feel. I don't mean small in a negative way, a way that suggests insignificance. No—standing on the beach, looking out at the expanse of blue...I feel small in the best way."
— Maggie Smith, (04:15) -
"I think my job as a poet and as a human being is to always lean toward wonder."
— Maggie Smith, (04:47) -
"[The poem] offers us these elements in such a profoundly original and moving way. I couldn't read this poem just once. I had to read it several times, picking up new treasures with each reading, like walking along the same stretch of beach at different times of day and finding new shells."
— Maggie Smith, (05:01)
Excerpt from “Notes on Beachgrass” by Yong-Yu Huang (Reading starts at 05:28):
"Again my mother calls about the dream where I strip wild lilies from the beach greenery, wandering in muted tones the thin decay of beauty I learned in my mind’s eye. In the distance, an animal’s fattened belly tips into salt, the sleeping dog, the tired barking of gulls. Don’t I know this dullness? These days I’d love anything buoyant…"
— Excerpt read by Maggie Smith, (05:28–07:17)
Highlighted Segments with Timestamps
- [03:36] – Maggie begins personal reflection on missing the ocean and the power of imagination.
- [04:15] – Describes feeling “small in the best way” at the ocean.
- [04:47] – Discusses the importance of wonder in poetry and life.
- [05:01] – Introduces the poem’s themes, comparing reading it to hunting for shells on the beach.
- [05:28–07:17] – Full reading of “Notes on Beachgrass” by Yong-Yu Huang.
Episode Takeaways
- Poetry deepens our connection to both personal experience and the external world, helping us recognize beauty, longing, and our place within something greater.
- The poem “Notes on Beachgrass” serves as an invitation to both revisit familiar images with fresh eyes and reflect inwardly on dreams, relationships, and the ever-present pull of nature and memory.
- Maggie’s gentle encouragement to “lean toward wonder” embodies the spirit of the show: cultivating beauty and meaning in everyday reflection.