Tasting Moments celebrates the strength of ordinary people. Rooted in personal history but resonant with universal truths, these twenty-one poems delve into themes of love, family, nature, healing, and the passage of time. In the title poem, a child tastes lotus roots prepared by her mother, only to complete the circle decades later by serving similar dishes to her elderly mother, illustrating how love transforms and endures across generations. “A Song for a Strong Soul” paints a portrait of Auntie who searches for a community that shares her language, culture, and love of dancing, fights off robbers, and battles cancer. In “Tai Chi,” the poet shares that she chooses to play Tai Chi instead of practicing it because it is a joyful game that relaxes and regenerates. This chapbook offers a space to pause, reflect, and savor fleeting yet significant experiences. With a voice that is intimate and evocative, the collection invites readers to taste the power of remembrance and the richness of living, one moment at a time.
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Pamela Pan
Pamela is an English professor at San Joaquin Delta College. She holds a Ph.D. in education from the University of California, Davis, a master’s degree in bilingual/ES studies from the University of Massachusetts, Boston, and a bachelor’s degree in engineering from Shanghai Jiao Tong University in China.
Pamela has received a fellowship to the Community of Writers Summer Writing Workshop. She is also an alumna of Napa Valley Writer’s Conference. Her work has been praised by authors such as Gail Tsukiyama and Lan Samantha Chang.
Pamela’s story “Baba’s Accordion” was published in California Writers Club’s Best of the Best: 2024 Literary Review. Her work has appeared in many magazines and anthologies, including Vision and Verse, Center of Attention, and The Fire Within. Her articles “Turning Family History into a Historical Novel” and “Finding the Soul of a Place” are featured on the Historical Novel Society North America website.
A lover of movement and language, Pamela finds her best metaphors while in motion—whether through the slow grace of Tai Chi or long walks accompanied by the voices of other writers.