In 1963 Bonner was diagnosed with a large stomach ulcer, and almost half of his stomach was removed by surgery. The shock of the operation, plus the social climate of the times (which included civil rights riots and the assassination of President John F. Kennedy), led Bonner to begin writing poetry, some of which was published in the Houston Forward Times, a weekly newspaper.
In 1963, Bonner suffered from a significant stomach ulcer that required surgery, removing about half of his stomach. The traumatic experience and the social climate (civil rights issues and Kennedy's assassination) led Bonner to start writing poetry, which was eventually published in the Houston Forward Times.