Maggie invites us to see simple objects in our lives as portals into big ideas.
New York Times bestselling memoirist and viral poet Maggie Smith shares five items that live on her writer’s desk daily, reminding her of what matters most. She begins her talk with a reading of the poem “Talisman,” and then shares how simple objects carry profound “metaphorical freight” when infused with personal meaning and experience. Through each object she shares, Maggie takes the audience on a journey through exploring “big ideas” that guide her creative life— ideas including, “community, creativity, courage, and trust.” She encourages us all to find our personal talismans and consider what they represent. When we know what they mean, and we keep them visible, they can help us discern what we say “yes” to and what isn’t for us after all.
About the speaker
Maggie Smith is the New York Times bestselling author of You Could Make This Place Beautiful and six other books of poetry and prose: Goldenrod, Keep Moving, Good Bones, The Well Speaks of Its Own Poison, Lamp of the Body, and a forthcoming illustrated picture book for children, My Thoughts Have Wings, out in February 2024. Her poems and essays have appeared in The New York Times, The New Yorker, The Paris Review, The Nation, The Best American Poetry, and more. A lifelong resident of the Columbus area, she now lives in Bexley with her two children.
Favorite quotes from this talk See all
“You’re not for everyone. And that’s OK. The people who you are for will find you.”
Say the thing. Send the text. Say the compliment. Tell the person you love their dress.
“The idea of the small gesture. that we have no idea what the ripples of that small gesture will be.”
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