Polyphony Web Edition, Winter 2011/2012
There is little that can prepare one for the brutality of watching a friend die of cancer. The slow, cruel consumption of the body by an unwelcome invader has given us—rightfully so, I now understand--metaphors of battle and war. Capable of both a full cavalry assault and a stealth terrorist attack, cancer demands a physical, emotional and intellectual vigilance that distills our relationships and focus to their most essential. While the outside world continues to move along at it's usual daily pace, the world of those affected by cancer seems to spin on an axis that at one turn is frighteningly fast and at another numbingly slow, creating a strange warped perspective on everything else. For a time, Rafael Torch, a teacher and a writer, seemed to outwit his cruel opponent. But as the fall progressed, it was clear that no amount of medical savvy or fortitude would be able to change the course of his horrible little war. On December 12, 2011, we said goodbye to a dear friend, just 36 years old.
It is with this story that I beg your forgiveness for magazines mailed out too late, web updates overlooked, and a lost season of Polyphony W.E. I hope that you will understand that there are times in life when one must simply Be There. These are the times that most inform our life experience and that give meaning to all that we endeavor to create. I hope you'll join me in welcoming 2012 and celebrating the eight writers here who so eloquently explore what it means to be human.
It is with this story that I beg your forgiveness for magazines mailed out too late, web updates overlooked, and a lost season of Polyphony W.E. I hope that you will understand that there are times in life when one must simply Be There. These are the times that most inform our life experience and that give meaning to all that we endeavor to create. I hope you'll join me in welcoming 2012 and celebrating the eight writers here who so eloquently explore what it means to be human.
Elizabeth Keegan
Executive Director
