december acknowledges with sadness the passing of Vern Rutsala in April. Referred to as “the gentle giant of Oregon poetry” and author of more than a dozen books, Vern Rutsala was poetry editor of december for four issues, and his own poetry appeared in Vols. 3, 4, 7, 9, 11, and 24.

Many of december’s advisory editors went way back with Vern Rutsala — some to their time attending the Iowa Writers’ Workshop together — and have written poems in tribute to Rutsala’s life.  Following are a couple of them.

DEJA-VU

On four lines by Vern Rutsala

The evening is carved of light.

One has watched here before, the view

of this bracken-edged meadow, the heather

lofting plumes into dusklight out of shadows.

One wonders what he has sought

in the meadows of deja-vu,

and on what occasions he has weathered

these asides of recall — and were there others?

For here an uncertain sleight

of sunlight settles itself like vows —

in the broken fields of sons and fathers —

taken, broken, retaken.  Darkness stammers,

the linnet has gone to flight;

hours have fallen to clay review

and have sprung again.  Out of ashen feathers

ancient summer uncovers ancient summers.

The evening is carved of light.

In the meadows of deja-vu,

in the broken fields of sons and fathers,

ancient summer uncovers ancient summers.

by Lewis Turco

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december is thrilled to announce the winners of the first annual december Awards!

The Jeff Marks Memorial Poetry Prize, judged by Stephen Berg

WINNER Greg Jensen Anybody Mentions the Pope

HONORABLE MENTION Dina Elenbogen A New Year

Curt Johnson Prose Award in Fiction, judged by Mary Helen Stefaniak

WINNER Jim Nichols Owls

HONORABLE MENTION Michael Fertik Hunting in Nangarhar

Curt Johnson Prose Award in Creative Nonfiction, judged by William Kittredge

WINNER Garet Lahvis NQR

HONORABLE MENTION Jenny McKeel Saigon

december is proud to announce its nominations for the Pushcart Prize. These works appeared in december Vol. 24 in 2013. Please enter your email below for the link to read the nominations.

Healer Man, a poem by Ricardo Pau-Llosa

Italics, a poem by Karen Holman

The End of Our Friends As We Know Them, fiction by Nance Van Winckel

Birdsong, fiction by Faye Reddecliff

Cairns, a poem by Amy Beeder

Beyond Its Possibilities, a poem by Grace Cavalieri

In addition, the following works were independently nominated for a Pushcart Prize by Pushcart Press Contributing Editors:  The Horsehead Nebula, a poem by Kelly Cherry; During the Biology Year, nonfiction by Gary Fincke;  Seemingly Unrelated Events, nonfiction by Sherri Hoffman; Before You Were Born, a poem by Michael Lally; I Do Not Need Them Now, The Beasts, a poem by David Lunde;  None but the Libraries Mourn You, a poem by Dawn Robinson;  Components of Prayer, a poem by Dawn Robinson;  The End of Our Friends As We Know Them, fiction by Nance Van Winckel.