Summary4 min read

The Slowdown: Poetry & Reflection Daily

Episode 1466: “Poem about everything except—” by Amy Lemmon
Host: Maggie Smith
Date: February 27, 2026
(Podcast by American Public Media, in partnership with The Poetry Foundation)

Episode Overview

In this episode, host Maggie Smith meditates on one of poetry’s most perennial questions: what are poems about? By introducing and reflecting on Amy Lemmon’s “Poem about everything except—,” Smith examines the pitfalls of insisting on themes and the role of surprise and discovery in the act of writing poetry. She reads Lemmon’s playful, maximalist poem and guides listeners into the daily possibilities of paying attention—through language, through wonder, and through the everyday.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Challenges of Defining “Aboutness” in Poetry

Maggie’s Anecdote:
- Maggie Smith opens with the awkwardness she experiences when telling people she's a poet:
  
  “When I meet someone new or my Lyft driver strikes up a conversation… it can be a little dicey, telling people I'm a poet or a writer.” (00:50)
- She relays others’ surprise, e.g., a dental hygienist asking, “poet. Do people still do that?”
- She notes how basic questions—“What kind of poems do you write?” “What are your poems about?”—are surprisingly hard for her to answer.
On Writing and Intention:
- Smith suggests that “aboutness for a poet can be a trap”:
  
  “I think you can ruin a poem by going into it determined to write about something in particular. Ideally, you pay attention and listen and you let the language lead you. Not some idea of theme. The poem reveals itself over time.” (02:02)
- This reflection sets the stage for readers/listeners to think expansively about poetry—beyond simplistic summaries or takeaways.

2. Anticipating the Poem: Maximalism and Surprise

Smith is drawn to Amy Lemmon’s poem “from the get go” because of its title:

“I went in anticipating maximalism. Everything but the kitchen sink, as the saying goes, and the poem delivered. But it also surprised me again and again, and I think it will surprise you too. Maybe deep down, all poems are about just that surprise, a feeling of discovery.” (02:40)
This sets an expectation of abundance, an exploration of the unsaid, as much as the said.

The Poem: "Poem about everything except—" by Amy Lemmon (Full reading at 03:00 – 06:22)

(Attribution note: The poem itself is read in its entirety by Maggie Smith, quoting Amy Lemmon.)

Selected Notable Lines:

“To write these days is to avoid telling people how angry I am.” (03:00, quoting Daniel Nester as epigraph)
“Behold the Rottweiler in its cage. Behold homemade cornhusk ornaments. Behold the photo of a J. Marr miniature piano. Behold the galaxy of knees at noon facing the maestro's fragrance.”
“Don't be that person who waits until the last chorus to join in. Makes you look careless, care less.”
“Rejection is a state like catalepsy to move through. Behold the scroll, the wretched bankroll, the double tongue summoning his minions to court, Calculate the chorus and ford the spring.”
“A small thing, mysterious as amaryllis, A little water, a little sun. Behold my process of pretending.”
“The voice will always call a murmur or hum a spring burbling or a dammed up flood. Locally sourced, unforced, double spaced and tortured into shape.”
“Behold the ample galaxy, a naked miracle through the blinds. Clean your damn windows and the bulb will bloom.”

Memorable Moments:

The repeated imperative “Behold”—a call to witness both the mundane and the mysterious.
The oscillation between the significant and the trivial, suggestion of abundance and omission, resonance with the episode’s theme of “everything except—.”
The blend of humor, wisdom, and vulnerability, e.g., “Clean your damn windows and the bulb will bloom.”

Maggie Smith’s Reflections

On Surprise and Discovery:
Maggie’s commentary before the poem aligns with the poem’s texture of unpredictability and refusal to pin down a single subject:

“Maybe deep down, all poems are about just that surprise, a feeling of discovery.” (02:55)
On Process:
Smith encourages a mode of attention—reflective, present, unforced—mirrored by the poem’s shifting catalog of images.

Notable Quotes

“I think aboutness for a poet can be a trap. I think you can ruin a poem by going into it determined to write about something in particular.”
—Maggie Smith (02:02)
“Maybe deep down, all poems are about just that surprise, a feeling of discovery.”
—Maggie Smith (02:55)
“To write these days is to avoid telling people how angry I am.”
—Amy Lemmon (via Daniel Nester) (03:00)
“Behold the ample galaxy, a naked miracle through the blinds. Clean your damn windows and the bulb will bloom.”
—Amy Lemmon (06:15)

Timestamps for Important Segments

00:50 – 02:40: Maggie Smith discusses the difficulty in explaining poetry’s “aboutness” and her writing process.
02:40 – 03:00: Smith introduces today’s poem, situating it within the discussion of maximalism and surprise.
03:00 – 06:22: Full reading of “Poem about everything except—” by Amy Lemmon.
06:22 – 07:44: Closing credits and production information.

Tone and Atmosphere

The episode balances humor and thoughtful reflection, with Smith’s conversational warmth and the poem’s eclectic, attentive language inviting listeners to approach poetry—and daily life—with curiosity rather than prescription. The mood is gently insistent on the value of presence, even amidst ambiguity or unfinished stories.

Summary Takeaway

This episode of The Slowdown highlights how poetry can be less about clear themes and more about discovery, surprise, and a broadened capacity for attention. Amy Lemmon’s poem “Poem about everything except—” embodies this ethos—a sprawling, witty, at times mysterious meditation on all that’s included and left unsaid. Maggie Smith’s thoughtful approach encourages listeners to resist simplification, to “clean your damn windows” and let in new ways of seeing.

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Transcript6 lines

[00:00]
A
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[00:30]
B
Quick Choose a meal deal with McValue, the $5 McChicken meal deal, the $6 McDouble meal deal, or the new $7 Daily Double meal deal, each with its own small fries, drink and Four Piece McNuggets. There's actually no rush. I'm just excited for McDonald's for a limited time only. Prices and participation may vary.not Valder McDivery.
[00:51]
C
I'm Maggie Smith and this is the slowdown. When I meet someone new or my Lyft driver strikes up a conversation or a new nurse practitioner asks, what do you do? It can be a little dicey, telling people I'm a poet or a writer. When I say I'm a poet, people always look surprised. One time a dental hygienist said, poet. Do people still do that? As if poetry was something people wrote only in Shakespeare's time. Sometimes people ask, what kind of poems do you write? Or what are your poems about? These seem like pretty basic questions, but I've always found them difficult to answer. What kind of poems do I write? Free verse poems for adults. Poems that mostly don't rhyme. And the other question is just as loaded because I'm not thinking about what my poems are about when I'm writing them. I'm not planning a theme. I think aboutness for a poet can be a trap. I think you can ruin a poem by going into it determined to write about something in particular. Ideally, you pay attention and listen and you let the language lead you. Not some idea of theme. The poem reveals itself over time. I was drawn to today's poem from the get go because of its title poem about everything except I went in anticipating maximalism. Everything but the kitchen sink, as the saying goes, and the poem delivered. But it also surprised me again and again, and I think it will surprise you too. Maybe deep down, all poems are about just that surprise, a feeling of discovery. Poem about everything except By Amy Lemon to write these days is to avoid telling people how angry I am. Daniel Nestor Behold the Rottweiler in its cage. Behold homemade cornhusk ornaments. Behold the photo of a J. Marr miniature piano. Behold the galaxy of knees at noon facing the maestro's fragrance. Behold. Behold I stand at the door and knock, knock, knock. Answer the call. Be real now. Be here and calculate cost versus Bennies. Don't be that person who waits until the last chorus to join in. Makes you look careless, care less. Rejection is a state like catalepsy to move through. Behold the scroll, the wretched bankroll, the double tongue summoning his minions to court, Calculate the chorus and ford the spring. A small thing, mysterious as amaryllis, A little water, a little sun. Behold my process of pretending. Sweet pea, the voice will always call a murmur or hum a spring burbling or a dammed up flood. Locally sourced, unforced, double spaced and tortured into shape. Copyright the Year of our Lord. Blank, blankety blank. Amen. Behold the ample galaxy, a naked miracle through the blinds. Clean your damn windows and the bulb will bloom.
[06:23]
D
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. Find us on instagram loadownshow and blueskylowdownshow.org the slowdown is written by me, Maggie Smith. Our lead producer is Micah Kielbon and our associate producer is Maria Wurtel. Our music is composed by Kyle Andrews, engineering by Josh Savageau. Our editor and digital producer is Jordan Turgeon. Additional production help by Susanna Sharpless, Ruby Sigmund and Lauren Humpert. APM's Director of Distribution is Amy Lundgren and our president is Chandra Kavati.
[07:44]
E
What will the American home look like 100 years from now? Building Tomorrow is a special episode from this Old House Radio Hour and Marketplace Morning Report that explores how we're building homes in a changing world. From wildfire resistant homes out west to microfactories in Massachusetts, where homes are constructed in months and even tiny home communities in Texas, this special investigates breakthrough transformations and how we build homes for the 21st century. You can listen to this episode now by searching for this Old House Radio Hour in your podcast.
[08:18]
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Apparently.