Tim Carmichael
Bio
Tim is an Appalachian poet and cookbook author. He writes about rural life, family, and the places he grew up around. His poetry and essays have appeared in Beautiful and Brutal Things, his latest book.
Achievements (12)
Stories (282)
Filter by community
The Glow Beneath the Ruin
I watch the final curl of flame shiver above the wood as if reluctant to surrender its trembling life. The fire has eaten all I once believed immovable leaving a hollowed shape that speaks softly with the hush of falling soot. In this dimming glow I sense the outline of my former self-rising only to sink again into the cradle of ash. It is a stillness heavy as thunder holding the last breath of all that has ended.
By Tim Carmichael2 months ago in Poets
The Festival of Unburning
The ritual begins at dusk on the winter solstice, when darkness reaches its deepest point and light prepares to return. Across the North Carolina mountains, in cabins and hollers, around fireplaces and outdoor fire pits, people gather with parchment and pen. They have come to practice what their ancestors understood: that sometimes you must burn something away to make room for transformation.
By Tim Carmichael2 months ago in Humans
Mary Oliver: How Poverty Forged a Voice That Reshaped Modern Poetry
Mary Oliver entered childhood with little support or comfort. Her home life carried tension that weighed heavily on her, so she sought refuge outdoors whenever she could slip away. Fields, woods, tide pools, birdsong, creeks, shifting weather, all of it offered relief from an atmosphere that felt too tight for a growing spirit. Those early escapes created habits that defined her entire career. She learned to listen, to watch closely, to follow small traces of movement through grass or across water. She learned to trust perception more than conversation. That trust evolved into a poetic voice treasured by millions.
By Tim Carmichael2 months ago in Humans
