Listen to Danielle Shandiin Emerson read “Sometimes, she listened to his stories.” from Shō No. 4 (Winter 2023/24). We nominated this poem for a Pushcart Prize.
“I wrote this as a sort of release from a lot of complex father and mental health related emotions. It’s written in third person to sort of distance myself, while also adding a more overhead view on something heavy I experienced that’s stuck with me, whether for better or for worse–and sometimes, I think that’s all we can ask for.”
– Danielle Shandiin Emerson
Danielle Shandiin Emerson is a Diné writer from Shiprock, New Mexico on the Navajo Nation. Her clans are Tłaashchi’i (Red Cheek People Clan), born for Ta’neezaahníí (Tangled People Clan). She has a B.A. in Education Studies and a B.A. in Literary Arts from Brown University. She has received support from GrubStreet, Lambda Literary, The Diné Artisan + Author Capacity Building Institute, Ucross Foundation, Vermont Studio Center, and Sundress Publications. She has work published and/or forthcoming from swamp pink, Uncharted Magazine, Poets.org, Yellow Medicine Review, The Chapter House Journal, and others. Her writing centers healing, kinship, language-learning, and family.
This poem is featured in Shō No. 4 (Winter 2024/25).
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