About John Ronan
John J. Ronan
is a poet, playwright, movie producer, and journalist. He has received national honors for his
poetry and was named a National Endowment for the Arts Fellow for 1999-2000.
In 2009 John published a new book of poems, Marrowbone Lane. He is also a former poet laureate of Gloucester, MA, and remains committed to the importance of civic poetry, as in "The Lesson," below. (On John's regard for Gloucester, see his op-ed pieces from the Boston Herald.) Also a playwright, his works include The Yeats Game and Eden, Please.
John is also the founder of the media production company American Storyboard, a teacher of film, an award-winning children's author, and host of the TV talk show The Writer's Block with John Ronan which begins its 24th season in 2013. A pioneer in electronic publishing, in 2002 he introduced a humorous e-book on the trials of turning 50 years of age.
Ronan lives in Gloucester, Massachusetts, with his wife, Sandy, and memories of their adopted Wyoming dog, Cowboy.
The Lesson
The kids weren’t
thinking of Aurora, Oakland, Tucson,
They had not pledged
themselves to weapons, and being kids
Could never remember
Blacksburg, Columbine, Binghamton.
The earnest boys and
girls of first grade
Weren’t linking
patriotism to firepower and stripper clips,
Nor Christmas to
domestic terror, cowardice, Congress –
Hadn’t learned the
rhetoric of re-election and leadership,
Nor yet had alphabet
enough to fathom madness.
Hands over their hearts,
the kid-citizens
Called out justice,
allegiance, republic,
The lofty thoughts of
American civic prayer
Made a persuading faith
by the pitch of children:
Simple witness and
common sense, a mix