A number of years ago, I was thinking about going back to school to get an MFA in creative writing. Somehow, I ended up on the phone with Jack Myers, a professor in the English department at SMU. He invited me to lunch to talk about it. We went to St. Pete’s Dancing Marlin and had way too many beers. I only knew him for a short time but I knew he was a great guy, and someone I would be lucky to have as a teacher. But life got in the way, and my plans were forcibly scrapped.
I’ll never get the chance, because Jack passed away peacefully in his sleep on Monday night. He was 67. And he was much, much more accomplished than my little anecdote above. Among many other things, he was named the Poet Laureate for the state of Texas in 2003. Go here to read more.
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You guessed right. He was an incredible teacher.
I didn’t know him very well, but Jack was a sensitive, intelligent and extremely well-gifted professor and writer. I had the pleasure of taking his intro to poetry class my sophomore year of SMU, and left a better writer, and I think a better person. He had a conviction for writing and inspiring others that I’ve seen few match. Jack, you’ll be sorely missed.
“If you want to make a difference
go to an empty place,
fill it up with yourself
and then let go of that and wait
until the place is empty again.
If you bring all of you with you
what you leave with will make an enormous difference” – Jack Myers
Jack was an extraordinary man. His legacy to the Dallas arts community is immeasurable.
I was blessed enough to have the pleasure to really get to know Jack the last four years of his life. He was my professor, my mentor, and, most importantly, my dear friend. I’ll never forget the stories we shared and all of the valuable things that he taught me. Words cannot even begin to express how much of an impact he had on my life, as well as the lives of many, many others.
I’ll miss you, Jack. But, rest assured, your legacy lives on through all of the lives who you so deeply touched. I don’t know where I’d be today without you, and, for that, I cannot thank you enough. Rest peacefully, Captain.
Also was an affable and successful poker player– a man of varied interests and talents. Will be missed.