Posts from April 2024

April 23, 2024

Damaged Heritage by J. Chester Johnson: Anti-Racism Text at St. Luke in the Fields

In April of this year, the St. Luke in the Fields anti-racism group began to read and discuss Damaged Heritage: The Elaine Race Massacre and A Story of Reconciliation by J. Chester Johnson (Pegasus/Simon & Schuster). It is expected that the author will join the St. Luke’s group in June for an in-depth examination of various parts of the book that have proven especially relevant and important to the Church’s anti-racism group. An Amazon best-seller, Damaged Heritage was also included in a Goodreads’ international, multi-year list of Best Nonfiction Books.

Located in the historic West Village neighborhood of Manhattan in New York City, St. Luke in the Fields, an Episcopal church, was founded in 1820 and constructed soon thereafter. Known for its exquisite gardens and music among other programs, St. Luke in the Fields has been an iconic institution in the West Village for many generations. It has also been acknowledged as an activist parish for various causes, being, for example, deeply involved over several decades with the LGBTQ+ community. In addition, the Church’s anti-racism group has been engaged in numerous anti-racism efforts, including participation at the diocesan level.

April 4, 2024

J. Chester Johnson’s “Night” Featured by Carnegie Hill Village

NIGHT

It's a night like none
Of the rest: too much too soon,
Too little too late.

The night overflows
Its peace, so I follow fear
Beyond my insight.

Be still and behold
The moments that I fear most
Pass by in disguise.

“Night” is an example of a triple haiku, a new, poetic form that I have used for several years. This form is derivative of the original haiku, which Japanese poets have employed for centuries. I believe I’m the only American poet now working with the triple haiku, but maybe not. American poets – initially, the Imagists, such as Ezra Pound, Amy Lowell, and John Gould Fletcher – began using a single haiku as a standalone poem in the early part of the 20th century. Toward the end of his life, Auden also wrote frequently in the haiku mode, but not as I have formulated it using three haiku in a poem with each haiku being the equivalent of a stanza, and each stanza being based on the normal haiku structure, having three lines with five syllables in the first and last lines and with seven syllables in the middle line.

J. Chester Johnson, CHV member