On April 3, St. Edward’s University was lucky enough to have poet Dean Young visit campus as part of the Marcia Kinsey Visiting Writers series.

Despite holding the title of state poet laureate of Texas as well as publishing 10 books of poetry, Young remained modest in his demeanor and it was both interesting and humbling to hear him speak.

Young opened his talk by reading several poems from his acclaimed book “Bender,”  a collection of new and selected poems that he published as he was preparing for a heart transplant. He also read a few other pieces from his body of work.

Young’s poems provided equal parts strange humor and thought provoking sentiment, his pieces creating a lighthearted yet poignant atmosphere for the audience. 

Lines in his poetry such as “See that tear in the rational? That’s where the miraculous slips in,” were touching and encouraged reflection from each audience member–definitely not his initial intention in writing the poem, but a beautiful effect of creation.

Before he ended his reading, he told the crowd that he was “honored to have [our] attention,” only further proving his pure and honest love for the art of poetry and the opportunity to share it in a large group setting.

What was most striking about hearing Dean Young speak was the organic honesty evident in his poetry as well as in his answers to the various questions asked during the Q & A portion of the talk.

Many of Young’s poems challenge reality. In fact, Young describes himself as a “surrealist poet,” including images that are at once realistic yet otherworldly.  

One audience member asked Young a question about whether or not he finds it hard transitioning from the world he sees through his poems in relation to reality, and if he finds the real world ridiculous at times.

“I find reality ridiculous all the time–too much time is spent deciphering what reality even means,” Young said.

He then continued to speak about the changeable qualities of realism in general.

“This is what we (humanity) have come up with as a collective dream?” Young questioned. 

As far as dwelling on success and the fear of failure, Young said he does not spend too much time thinking about it.

“I have never really known what’s going on with my work (and) what keeps me going is poetry itself (and) the energy of poetry,” Young said. 

When asked about ultimate goals and a sense of finality, Young seemed to think finality was objective.

“Finality is not one thing. It’s a process that constitutes our connection to the divine, stressing the act of creating despite accomplishments or failures along the way,” Young said. 

Young stressed that truly anyone can assist in the progress and history of humanity, and that attempting art is necessary for us as human beings–even if it just means writing in a personal journal.

“Art is what keeps us alive,” Young said.

As human beings, we must strive to continue to manifest our passions, and hearing Young speak provided a wonderful reminder.