NDR Commentary
In March of 2001, I heard Anthony Piccione read at the downtown YMCA in Syracuse, New York. His poems, so full of passion and wisdom, left me stuttering as I introduced myself to him afterward, but the serenity and joy that emanated from the man calmed me. I saw him once or twice more, and each time he was friendly and kind. A few months later, I wrote him a letter to tell him how much I admired him and his lovely book, For the Kingdom. I wrote that I saw in him the kind of poet and person that I wanted to be. He never wrote back; I didn’t know it at the time, but Tony had cancer. In November of 2001, he died.
“Elegy for Anthony Piccione” was my first attempt to memorialize him, and my own anguish is certainly evident. I mourn his loss still. As I write this, I return to my copy of For the Kingdom and read again his inscription: “For Shane—In Syracuse, on a dazzling night, feeling the great hope rise in us all.” In a time when hope is in such short supply, I miss him more than ever.