Tamara J. Madison

An unexpected kiss on the back of the neck 

at the kitchen table,

A gentle touch on the knee 

asking nothing but giving all,

The unexpected flowers when it is not 

a birthday, anniversary, or Mother’s Day,

A first-born son…

This has been a whirlwind of a summer for me with residencies, retreats, and reunions, not school, but family reunions! I have had the blessing of attending two family reunions within one month this summer. I saw faces…

I sustained a few losses recently. Blessedly, the losses were not people or property, but I experienced a few rejections and denials regarding proposals and opportunities that I held with very high hopes. A few I thought were for me…

“It’s the little things that count.”

“Love is in the details.”

I chose a photo of the above artwork along with the two sayings above as the focus for this month’s post. The photo is Mother and Child by Chief…

I am currently on artist/writer residency in Nebraska City, Nebraska where spring is in full bloom, trees are lush with leaves, and tulips are waltzing with the breeze beneath a radiant sun. I have been taking walk early in the…

It’s one thing after another changing these days. For many, it is starting to be extremely uncomfortable and even chaotic. Whether it is regarding social rules, political correctness, government, legislation, business, tariffs, visas, curriculum, technology, etc., the changes are happening…

Photo Credit: Phyllis Iller Photography - my grandmother (l.), my mother (r.)

We made it to another year, and it is time to celebrate once again! As usual, social media is filled with famous faces of the women that we…

In a recent interview where a couple of poems from my new collection are published, an editor referenced one of my poems as a struggle with “the guilt of survivorship.”  I was naively started by the question I had heard…

Happy New Year & New Year Blessings to you!

I am that person who believes I can say “happy new year” the entire month of January as long as it is my first time seeing someone for the year. In…

I have been crazy busy.  That’s what I call it.  I try not to say “too busy.”  I try to remember that this is the life that I asked for years ago, a life filled with art, poetry, music, and…

I have a few things simmering on back burners in my life.  The heat is low, no kettle whistle or rattling vent.  When I say “back burner” here, I am thinking of things in my life that I need to…

Poets are not birthed into the world by mere mystery and magic, they are inspired and nurtured.  I am the poet I am because of my gifts but equally because of the love and support that I have received over…

(Click image for more on poet)

Every teacher needs a teacher.  I had the blessing of talking to one of my greatest teachers this morning.  As a green, naive, angry, fierce young poet in my twenties in Chicago, I was…

Welcome to TamTalk!!!

TamTalk!!! is my personal blog where I would also love to hear back from you!  I will post about once a month or as often as I can. 

I am a writer/poet/performer who believes that the arts…

I had an interesting conversation with a fellow writer who was extremely frustrated with her work.  I have been there many times as a writer and have abandoned my work for days, weeks, even months at a time.  I have…

     I gotta new ‘do, looking pretty cute these days, smelling myself as some of my elders used to say.  I am hopping out of bed with more energy, playing in my closet, thumbing through textures and colors to create my…

Dear Ms. Oprah Winfrey,

     Happy Sunday to you from sunny Orlando, Florida! I just read where you featured United States Poet Laureate Joy Harjo on Super Soul Sunday.  I look forward to seeing it.  I am glad and very…

     “Gratitude” has become a popular catch phrase these days for social media posts, journal entries, new age living, life coaching, and even for marketing campaigns. It’s catchy, cute, perhaps even profitable in some cases. But saying “thank you” and showing…

     I needed an affordable getaway! I was looking for something that was not a part of my family or work roles and responsibilities.  Yes, I wanted some productive “me time.”  I also wanted to challenge myself to read more for…

     As excited as I was when I bought it, I had to struggle to read this book the color of a period napkin with rope and knots on the cover and bold white lettering, A BOUND WOMAN IS A DANGEROUS…