Sunday Recap & Theory by Maggie Devers

Sunday Recap & Theory by Maggie Devers

Author: Maggie Devers September 21, 2025 Duration: 9:12

Here’s your recap of this week’s poems plus one new poem to carry us into the week ahead.

Sep 15 - First Person Account of a Seed by Vinita Agrawal @vinitaagrawal18 on Instagram. Her book Eartha is out now.

Sep 16 - the listener by Laura Theis @wodehouse_and_i on Instagram. Her book, Introduction to Cloud Care, is available now. Her children’s poetry book, Poems from a Witch’s Pocket, is also available now.

Sep 17 - I am the dove by GiGi @thegigirising on Instagram. Her books, The Scorpio Rising, and The Marilyn Rising: Letters to Marilyn, are available now. Her third book, The California Rising: Poems from San Francisco & LA, will be published March 20, 2026

Sep 18 - Sometimes by Hania Anwar @wanderings.in.words on Instagram and @BeeInMyBonnet on Substack.

Sep 19 - When I fall asleep by Jessica Lyon-Wall @thetrinitypoet on Instagram. Her book, Bones, is out now.

Sep 20 - A Pocketful of Joy by Mishty Singh @mishty_22writes on Instagram.

Sep 21 - Theory

Maggie Devers
The bees dive back in the pool
Even though they can’t swim.
Something to do with their polarity
Of navigation or death wish.

I’ve not yet decided
Which story to believe
So I’ll move between the two
As suits what I seek that day—

Alignment or death. Perhaps
They are not so far off.
We seek extremes to know the boundary,
The lines we inhabit

Crawling on the underside of the string
Lost to physics or the reality we believe we inhabit
Perhaps the veil looks different than we imagine
And the moth to a flame isn’t so absolute in the end.

More from Maggie Devers ↓


Mentioned in this episode:

Write After: National Poetry Month with One Poem Only

Write After is a way to encourage poets to listen and write, and use National Poetry Month to highlight how listening to poetry makes us better poets. I know I write the best when I’m surrounded by beautiful poetry–it’s part of the reason I created this podcast, and I want to encourage others to share this practice. We'll get started in April. You can share to #WriteAfterOPO.

#WriteAfterOPO


Each day, One Poem Only offers a brief, deliberate pause. Hosted by Maggie Devers, this podcast is built on a simple, consistent premise: a single poem, read aloud, without analysis or introduction. It’s an audio space where the words themselves are the event, a performance meant to be absorbed in the few minutes it takes to hear it. The daily rhythm of the show creates a quiet ritual, a point of reflection woven into a busy life. You might hear a classic sonnet, a piece of modern free verse, or a work from a poet you’ve never encountered. The selection is varied, touching on themes from the natural world to the intricacies of human emotion, always leaving room for your own interpretation. The effect is cumulative; listening regularly becomes a subtle form of education in the sound and scope of poetry, and a small act of self-care. This isn't a lecture or a book club, but a performing art delivered directly to your ears. Maggie’s clear, thoughtful readings provide the only framework needed, allowing each poem to stand entirely on its own. The curtain falls, and the moment passes, but the podcast invites you to return tomorrow when a new piece takes center stage, offering another quiet moment, one poem only.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 355

One Poem Only
Podcast Episodes
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One Poem Only is a daily poetry podcast offering a quiet moment with a single poem—read aloud, without analysis or noise.Crushed Peaches In PalmPaige KellerThis poem was first featured in Mad Persona MagazineI am gatheri…
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To Be a Salamander by Rachel Turney | One Poem Only [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

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One Poem Only is a daily ritual: one poem, center stage, just for now.To Be a Salamander Rachel Turney I want to be like you. I crave your regenerative abilities.Does the heart count as a limb? If so, I could regrow thep…
Not mine anymore by Avalon | One Poem Only [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

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One Poem Only is a daily poetry podcast offering a quiet moment with a single poem—read aloud, without analysis or noise. Not mine anymore Avalon If my words are my ownThey are all that I haveExcept... that’s not quite r…
Butterscotch by Amy Laessle-Morgan | One Poem Only [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

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A daily reading from One Poem Only—a quiet space for a single poem, read aloud.ButterscotchAmy Laessle-MorganSomewhere between the amberblush streetlight of Divisionand the butterscotch stain on the back of my throat,the…
Dear Personal Care Department God by Chris Kads | One Poem Only [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

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One Poem Only is a daily poetry podcast offering a quiet moment with a single poem—read aloud, without analysis or noise.Dear Personal Care Department GodChris KadsAfter Lancee WhetmanGod of the Personal Care Department,…
Ugly Bones by Ella B. Winters | One Poem Only [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

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A daily reading from One Poem Only—a quiet space for a single poem, read aloud.Ugly Bones by Ella B. WintersElla B. WintersBehind the dusty radiator,green splashed like bloodspray in a B-film, from that timewhen you deci…