The Story of a Poet who Beat Cancer and Became a Squeak: A Sounded Narrative About Art, Education, and the Power of the Human Spirit

Abstract

This collaborative piece represents one of the first iterations of a methodological possibility called sounded narratives. It is also a performative piece of sound/art, a narrative about a poet and his voice, stories that are as much about himself as they are about curricular possibilities and the power of art. Based on a pair of over two-hour interview sessions before and after surgery to remove a large malignant esophageal mass, this piece of art/scholarship is one interpretation of a poet who beat cancer and became a squeak. It is a reminder of the possibilities of stories, the strength of the human spirit, the always-there potential for any experience to be educational, and of the importance of listening.