Pádraig Ó Tuama

One of the things that each of you have involved with is presence in the world.

Yomi as a youth worker and Rachel as parish priest.

And I wonder how it is that this public attention to work other than poetry feeds into your poetry.

I've heard both of you circle around that in your poetry and in your conversation already today.

So I don't think it's a new topic, but it's kind of finishing off with that.

Yomi, I wonder if you'd like to respond to that.

So how does it feed outside of, or does it?

Yeah, how does your work, the work that you've done in community work and youth work, feed into your work in poetry?

How about you, Rachel, when it comes to your role as a parish priest?

I know you've got more other leadership roles now, but you have been a parish priest for a long time.

I wonder how that feeds into your work in poetry.

Rachel Mann and Yomi Shoddy, thank you very much for everything that you've brought to us in this conversation.

Thank you to Stanza.

Thank you, Rachel.

Rachel Mann is a priest, writer and broadcaster.

Her second poetry collection, Eleanor Among the Saints, was published by Carconet in January of 2024.

Yomi Shoda is an award-winning Nigerian-British writer.

His debut poetry collection, Mannerism, was published by Penguin in October of 2022.

Deep thanks to everyone at Stanza Poetry Festival for putting this event together.

Poetry Unbound is Andrea Prevost, Carla Zanoni, Daryl Chen, Sparrow Murray, Chris Hegel, Bill Siegmund, and me, Padraig O'Tooma.