How a Poet Praised for Her Optimism Handles Despair

Naomi Shihab Nye is a poet, a Palestinian American, and a devoted optimist living through what she calls mysterious times. Though the recent reelection of former President Donald Trump and the grinding war in Gaza has her feeling “despondent,” she also has cause for gratitude. Nye is the 2024 winner of the Texas Writer Award, which will be presented to her at the Texas Book Festival this weekend in downtown Austin. That honor comes on the heels of her receiving the prestigious Wallace Stevens Award, a lifetime achievement honor from the Academy of American Poets. And then there’s being a proud Texan. “I always felt very, very lucky to be in a state where you could go anywhere and encourage voice and encourage listening to one another’s voices and feel at home doing…

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