Welcome to a snowy little winter haven. Let us float away on snowflakes and madeleine crumbs to Combray. Pay a wee visit to Proust. Shall we? 🍵
After reading this week’s poem, if you’re so inclined, feel free to scroll down and check out some of the things happening in my world as I continue these adventures in writing. Now, on to some new poetry….
This week’s poem begins with Marcel Proust, which is always a dangerous sentence because somewhere a bothered MFA student just sat bolt upright and ruined her brunch.
In Swann’s Way, the first volume of his In Search of Lost Time series, Proust gives us the famous madeleine dipped in lime-flower tea.
And from that tiny, ridiculous cake comes an entire lost world. Childhood, rooms, Sundays, weather, the dead returning with crumbs on their shoes. It remains one of literature’s great flexes: imagine needing seven volumes because dessert got complicated.
I love that. I also resent it, mostly because I have eaten thousands of cookies and recovered very little except my Type 2 diabetes and a renewed commitment to elastic waistbands.
Still, Proust was onto something.
The body is a sneaky archivist. It keeps terrible records in excellent hiding places. A taste. A smell. A certain kind of winter light. Church bells heard through cold air. Toast from another room. Jam darkening on a knife.
Suddenly, without consulting your calendar, some vanished hour returns and takes off its coat.
I suppose that is why I like crumbs better than a whole pastry. Crumbs are less official. Less posed. They have already made a mess of themselves. They know something about survival by fragments.
And elderberry jam? That’s another kind of trouble. Dark, sweet, medicinal, old-fashioned enough to make you suspicious of anyone under thirty. The kind of thing that belongs in a cupboard beside cough syrup, family secrets, and one jar nobody is brave enough to open.
So maybe Proust had it right.
The past does not need a cathedral, a thunderclap, or a reasonably priced therapist. Sometimes it only needs a quirky cup of tea, one pretentious little cake, and l’audace to come back uninvited.
Which is rude, of course. But also, annoyingly, brilliant.
As always, I look forward to hearing your thoughts, feelings, and reactions to this week’s poem in the “Leave a Reply” comment section at the very bottom of this page.
-PS Conway ❄️ ❄️ ❄️
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figure eights
we woke to snow
floating like madeleine crumbs
in lime-flower tea.
the parish church bells
summoned us,
shudders of cold
and conspicuous pleasure,
nettling goosebumps,
cheeks flushed with rose,
mittened hands entwined
ice skating
in endless figure eights,
learning eternity,
so thornless,
innocent.
someone is toasting bread,
a hint of elderberry jam,
sleep, my love,
sleep.
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This Week’s Links to My Published Work…
- Purchase Echoes Lost in Stars
- on Amazon USA: https://a.co/d/eZPzwxX
- on Amazon Canada: https://a.co/d/ebjqinU
- on Amazon UK: https://amzn.eu/d/avWTF19
- on Amazon DE: https://amzn.eu/d/8IDYSIv
- Purchase Life Sucks
- on Amazon USA: https://a.co/d/arnze2N
- on Amazon Canada: https://a.co/d/8sBYofv
- on Amazon UK: https://amzn.eu/d/brzfJ4l
- on Amazon DE: https://amzn.eu/d/95Y4WAA
- My author website: https://psconway.com/
- My Interview with AllAuthor: https://allauthor.com/interview/psconway/
Media News…
*NEW* My interview with Steve Cuden for his brilliant podcast StoryBeat – what a great conversation! https://www.storybeat.net/p-s-pat-conway-poet-episode-395/
*NEW* My interview with Editor-in-Chief, Gabriela Marie Milton of Literary Revelations Publishing House: https://literaryrevelations.com/2026/01/25/the-portrait-of-a-poet-ps-conway/
*NEW* My interview with author Tricia Copeland on her podcast Finding the Magic Book is now available to watch: https://youtu.be/NhieYECI-H4
Latest Publication News
It has been a productive last few months for me. 7 POEMS published. If you are interested in a reading any of these, I have embedded the Amazon links below.
- This upcoming week, my 5 untitled haiku will be published in the haiku anthology, Haiku for Soulmates, published by the award-winning Gabriela Marie Milton and Literary Revelations Publishing House. More to come with Amazon links on next week’s blog.
* - My poem mercy will be published in The Ekphrastic Review on May 12. They are a literary “online journal devoted entirely to writing inspired by visual art. Their objective is to promote ekphrastic writing, promote art appreciation, and experience how the two strengthen each other and bring enrichment to every facet of life.”
* - My 3 poems – the wet centre is bottomless, laugh tracks, and three flights away – were published in Mouthful of Salt in Issue #3 on April 27. They are “a Black-led literary journal dedicated to bold, boundary-pushing storytelling. Our editorial vision is shaped by a wide range of lived experiences, and we are committed to creating a space where writers from across the globe can be seen, heard, and celebrated.”
* - My poem the color of staying was published in the Spring’26 edition of PHIL LIT Journal on March 15. This literary journal “promotes writing that engages with philosophical, metaphysical, ethical, & existential themes; without sacrificing beauty, craft, surprise, or risk.” Please be sure to check it out.
* - I have 2 poems – paint and i have seen love do the same – published in The Belfast Review, Winter/Spring 2026. Based in the north of Ireland, this gorgeous emerging literary magazine, in addition to poetry, “aims to create a dialogue between the arts, featuring genres not usually included in literary journals such as song lyrics, plays, screenplays, and hybrid forms, to better reflect the lived experience of art, the self, and the city.”
Latest News – Life Sucks…
So far, Life Sucks has received many ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Editorial Reviews. More to come soon.
I’m anticipating a whole bunch of solid Reader Reviews to begin populating Amazon in the next few weeks, too. The goal is to get to 50 Reader Reviews ASAP to kick Amazon’s promotion engine into a higher gear.
Speaking of Editorial Reviews, we secured a BIG ONE – BookLife. This is the indie press division of Publishers Weekly and represents a major credibility lift to my published work. Here is a link, in case you’re interested in reading the entire review:
And here are a few other snippets of other editorial reactions so far!
– “Snort-laughs and gasp-worthy wit – PS Conway goes there, and it’s hilarious.”
– “A must-read for anyone stressed, cynical, or just in need of a damn good laugh.”
– “Darkly funny, brutally honest, and weirdly comforting – like therapy, but with colonoscopies.”
❄️ COME BACK EACH WEEK FOR NEW POETRY ❄️
Such a touching look at how our hearts loop back to moments of pure innocence. You capture that “thornless” time perfectly, offering a deep sense of rest and the security of being truly loved. Great job! Thank you for sharing, my friend!
I’m sure you get this, PS – Sometimes I just have to leave the pathos behind and emerge back into the light for something that feels – good. Wash off some of the emotional grime. Really appreciate your kind words, my friend. 🙏🏻🥂🌹❄️🌹🥂🙏🏻