Summary3 min read

Podcast Summary

Podcast: The Slowdown: Poetry & Reflection Daily
Episode: 1385: At Night by Stanley Plumly
Host: Maggie Smith
Date: October 30, 2025

Episode Overview

In this episode, host Maggie Smith explores the nuanced nature of solitude—how it is both a necessity and a challenge, especially for artists and writers. Drawing from her own experiences as a solo parent, freelancer, and lifelong resident of her city, Maggie sets the stage for Stanley Plumly’s poem At Night, reflecting on the loneliness and purity that solitude can bring. Through her personal anecdotes and an intimate reading of the poem, the episode invites listeners to consider their own relationship with alone time, especially in the wake of collective solitude during the pandemic.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

The Necessity & Challenge of Solitude

Maggie Smith describes her need for alone time and the intentional choices she makes to protect this aspect of her life, despite being a solo parent ('I need a lot of alone time. I know this about myself and I've done my best to build a life that protects that need.' [01:01]).
She reflects on both the comfort and the difficulties of being alone:

"On one hand, many of us crave and require solitude to write, to read, to concentrate. But sometimes prolonged apartness from others can make you feel a little feral." ([02:04])
Smith recounts how the 2020 COVID-19 lockdown forced many people to become acquainted with long stretches of solitude and later, the awkward process of reconnecting with the outside world.
She notes the importance of moderation:

"There is such a thing as too much solitude, too much separation from others. All things in moderation, I suppose." ([02:28])

Artistic Solitude: A “Double Bind”

Smith introduces Stanley Plumly as a poet who deeply understood the complex interplay between solitude and artistry:

"Maybe more than anyone else in my life, Stan understood the double bind of deep solitude, that for the poet, for the artist, it's as lonely as it is necessary. It's both." ([02:39])

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

Solo Parenting and Solitude

"Yes, I'm a solo parent of two children...but I work from home each day, so I've given myself a buffer of several hours every day when I'm mostly by myself." ([01:13])
Reactions to Working from Home

"I remember when I left my day job almost 15 years ago to work from home as a freelancer. A co-worker said, 'Aren't you going to get lonely?' I laughed. No offense, but no." ([01:39])
Solitude During the Pandemic

"So many of us got a taste of this during lockdown in 2020. Parents, children, co-workers, neighbors. I think we all had to learn how to live in our bubbles..." ([02:16])
Understanding Solitude’s Artistic Role

"...for the poet, for the artist, it's as lonely as it is necessary. It's both." ([02:39])

Poem Reading: At Night by Stanley Plumly

[03:08 - 04:09]

Maggie Smith reads At Night in a contemplative, gentle tone, emphasizing the poem’s meditation on carrying solitude, darkness, memory, and the ephemeral nature of both happiness and loneliness. Select lines include:

"When did I know / that I’d have to carry it around in order to have it / when I need it, say, in a pocket?"
"…until the way my mother would sit all night / in a room without the lights, / smoking until she disappeared."
"No one you are or could ever be / my mother like another me in another life…"
"I can be alone as I’ve never been alone before."
The reading highlights the poem’s themes of absence, maternal memory, and the sometimes-pure emptiness of being truly alone.

Timestamps for Key Segments

01:01-02:04: Maggie shares her personal need for solitude and challenges of finding it in a familiar city.
02:04-02:28: Discussion on craving solitude vs. feeling "feral" when alone too long; pandemic reflections.
02:39-03:08: Introduction to Stanley Plumly and the double-edged nature of artistic solitude.
03:08-04:09: Full reading of At Night by Stanley Plumly.

Overall Tone & Takeaway

Maggie Smith’s tone is introspective, warm, and empathetic. She invites listeners to accept the paradox of solitude—as a wellspring for creativity and self-discovery, yet also a potential source of loneliness. Through both her reflections and Plumly’s poem, the episode offers solace and resonance for those navigating the boundaries between connection and aloneness.

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Transcript5 lines

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[01:02]
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Smith and this is the Slowdown I need a lot of alone time. I know this about myself and I've done my best to build a life that protects that need. Yes, I'm a solo parent of two children, so I'm not alone much in the evenings. Yes, I've lived in the same city all my life, so it's not easy for me to be alone in public, to sit at a coffee shop, to do some writing, or to have a meal or see a concert by myself. I'm always running into people I know high school classmates, former college professors, former students, old neighbors, and even relatives. But I work from home each day, so I've given myself a buffer of several hours every day when I'm mostly by myself. Sometimes there are meetings in person or virtual, but for the most part, while my children are at school, I get a decent stretch of solo time. I remember when I left my day job almost 15 years ago to work from home as a freelancer. A co worker said, aren't you going to get lonely? I laughed. No offense, but no. Anyone who thought I'd be lonely didn't know me very well. I get it though. It's a double edged sword. On one hand, many of us crave and require solitude to write, to read, to concentrate. But sometimes prolonged apartness from others can make you feel a little feral. So many of us got a taste of this during lockdown in 2020. Parents, children, co workers, neighbors. I think we all had to learn how to live in our bubbles, separated from many of the people and places we loved. And then we had to relearn how to enter the world once lockdown was over. There is such a thing as too much solitude, too much separation from others. All things in moderation, I suppose. Today's poem is by one of my favorite poets, the late Stanley Plumlee. Maybe more than anyone else in my life, Stan understood the double bind of deep solitude, that for the poet, for the artist, it's as lonely as it is necessary. It's both At Night by Stanley Plumlee. When did I know that I'd have to carry it around in order to have it when I need it, say, in a pocket? The dark itself not dark enough, but needing to be added to, handful by handful if necessary, until the way my mother would sit all night in a room without the lights, smoking until she disappeared. Where would she go? Because I would go there in the morning, nothing but a blanket and all her absence and the feeling in the air of happiness and so much loneliness, a kind of purity of being and emptiness. No one you are or could ever be my mother like another me in another life gone where I will go night now likely dark enough I can be alone as I've never been alone before. The Slowdown is a production of American Public Media in partnership with the Poetry Foundation. To get a poem delivered to you daily, go to slowdownshow.org and sign up for our newsletter and find us on Instagram lodownshow and blueskylowdownshow.org Foreign hello Slowdown listeners. Poetry Magazine has a special offer just for you. Subscribe to one year of Poetry Magazine today and receive their limited edition tote bag for $39. That's the cost of one Loboo. You'll receive 10 beautifully curated print magazines of contemporary poetry. Unlimited digital access via the Poetry Magazine app and a tote bag to carry it all. Subscribe today@poetrymagazine.org Slowdown25 to receive this special offer.