On this episode of Badass we are talking with poet Mary Sexson about her upcoming book, Her Addiction, An Empty Place at the Table. The poems contained within it provide an unflinchingly honest look at addiction, the impact it has on families, and the endless orbit between fear, despair, and hope that parents find themselves in. It is based on her experience of watching her daughter Sarah struggle with chaotic drug and alcohol use before finally recovering.
Here is a link to order the book: Her Addiction, An Empty Place at the Table
About our Guest
Mary Sexson is author of the award-winning book, 103 in the Light, published by Restoration Press. She is co-author of Company of Women, New and Selected Poems, published by Chatter House Press. Her poetry has appeared in Tipton Poetry Journal, Lion’s Den Press, Laureate, Hoosier Lit, Flying Island, New Verse News, The Indianapolis Review, Last Stanza Poetry Journal, Of Rust and Glass: Scars, and Anti-Heroin Chic, among others. Sexson’s poetry is part of the INverse Poetry Archives for Hoosier Poets. One of her poems is in the Polaris Trilogy, part of the Lunar Codex project sending poetry and other works of art to the moon. Nasa will launch this digital anthology on board as a time capsule in 2024, to reside at the Lunar South Pole.
Born and raised in Indianapolis, IN. Mary graduated from Broad Ripple High School 1972. She attended Indiana University from 1972-1976 and graduated with a degree in English/Creative Writing. She married her husband Jack in 1982, and they had 2 kids together, Sarah and Jackson. By 1993 Mary had settled into a career as a Montessori teacher, and then an administrator, at The Children’s House in Indianapolis until her partial retirement in 2021. She now tutors children, and helps the office run smoothly.
