Virginia Mae read the poem’s first verse and set the tone for the entire project. The poem reads: "I, now thirty-seven years old in perfect health begin," and here she is—almost 97 years old—embodying every syllable of those words. Nobody listening to her, or watching her, should ever ask, "Why isn't a thirty-seven year old man reading this?"
It was a lot to ask of her that day—having her read the passage, and then read it again and again. It’s tiring to give what we ask of these folks. But Virginia Mae was totally generous. Totally present.
I loafe and invite my soul,
My tongue, every atom of my blood, form’d from this soil, this air,
Creeds and schools in abeyance,