Poem archive

Poems

Read poems by Arizona and Southwestern writers, plus classic work preserved in the AZPoetry literary archive.

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Hyperrealistic fine-art painting inspired by FAILURE TO LEAVE PHOENIX IN ORDER TO SAVE MY LIFE IN THE SUMMER OF 1968 by Michael C. Ford.

2026

FAILURE TO LEAVE PHOENIX IN ORDER TO SAVE MY LIFE IN THE SUMMER OF 1968

By Michael C. Ford

“FAILURE TO LEAVE PHOENIX IN ORDER TO SAVE MY LIFE IN THE SUMMER OF 1968” by Michael C. Ford is a poem centered on arizona, place and geography, memory. Its imagery is anchored in Arizona, Tucson. The poem develops its subject through recurring images and shifts in emotional pressure rather than reducing the experience to a single statement.