Last year Paul Stephens-Wood sent me a FaceBook message turning me onto his Poetry Box in England. He was so inspired by the Poetry Boxes he saw on his visit to Portland that he built one himself. Not only that its actually curated and supported by the local community library and has a website. To see which poems they’ve posted and to submit your own poems follow this link…
https://www.breamcommunitylibrary.co.uk/poetry
"love is a place" Now that an ee cummings Poetry Box on the Way
Tacoma will soon have an ee cummings Poetry Box. The ee cummings is a beautiful selection of rosewood, mahogany, walnut and salvaged red cedar. Delightfully crafted and all lowercase. Nestled inside is all the hardware needed to mount the Poetry Box securely to a post. Also inside is a selection of emergency poems and a desiccant packet to help keep poems dry along with the venting and rain slots vital to the weather resistant design. It is up to the USPS (United States Postal Santa) to safely deliver by Christmas.
Dickinson Poetry Box Looks Like New
Steve and Karen were very happy with the repair, cleaning, sanding, and refinishing of their Dickinson Poetry Box.
Read moreAround the Corner: Another Poetry Box in Northeast Portland
Like the Poetry Box in Brooklyn, New York in the previous post this all Ipe (aka Ironwood) redesigned Neruda Poetry Box is now open for poetry. However, this one is right around the corner from my workshop in the Woodlawn/Concordia/Alberta Arts neighborhood. The first poem is by Walt Whitman.
When I Heard the Learn’d Astronomer
By Walt Whitman
When I heard the learn’d astronomer,
When the proofs, the figures, were ranged in columns before me,
When I was shown the charts and diagrams, to add, divide, and measure them,
When I sitting heard the astronomer where he lectured with much applause in the lecture-room,
How soon unaccountable I became tired and sick,
Till rising and gliding out I wander’d off by myself,
In the mystical moist night-air, and from time to time,
Look’d up in perfect silence at the stars.
From public domain
From left to right Claire, Walt, Dolly, and Clay
Brooklyn gets a Poetry Box
Here is a picture of the latest Poetry Box in Brooklyn. Amir (on the left) bought a box and a post and I sent them to New York along with expansion bolts and a concrete drill bit so he and his neighbor Harv (on the right) could mount it in time for Amir’s wife’s birthday. I did a FaceTime call with Amir and sent him a Youtube video on how to use expansion bolts. The poem they chose is one by Dawn Thompson entitled Mother and Child. https://combustus.com/dawn-thompson/
MOTHER AND CHILD
BY DAWN THOMPSON
___________________________________________
The limbs of the tree reached to lift me
with great green palms
thinking I was its child.
It sang a lullaby to me on the strings of wind.
I sat myself inside the house of the tree’s trunked body
the sap of its knowing at my back
and I cried a pond
even though it had not asked me to.
I cried all the ways my life had not happened
and the tree never said no
but held me against its years
the wind of its song a breath in me.
Finally, under the tree’s sheltered sky
I grew limbs of no weight
bright and flowered
impossible, glorious wings.
From Cornbustus https://combustus.com/dawn- thompson/#Yd6B8Z81dmv7QBhP .99
TAKE A POEM ٠ LEAVE A POEM ٠ TAKE A MOMENT ٠ LEAVE INSPIRED
Poems in the Time of COVID 19 or...
What used to be National Poetry Month is being celebrated by Poetry Boxes this year by featuring online poetry. The first source we celebrate is Rattle. If you are not familiar with Timothy Green and his cadre of poetry experiences you are in for a treat. Rattle.com is the place to start. In addition to their print journal the site has a whole section devoted to ekphrastics, poems about art which are perfect for Poetry Boxes. The weekly Poets Respond® is a delightful way to keep your neighbors up to date with current event poems. There is even a live on YouTube open mic every Sunday to read your submission even if it is not chosen as the Poets Respond® poem of the week.
If that were not enough, on Tuesdays Tim interviews a poet of note. His interview style is seasoned with both laidback charm and expert insight. Then always with an eye to encourage not only reading poetry but writing he ends the interview with a prompt. You’ll spend the next week with poems rattling around in your head and if one drops out you can read it after the interview. Go to the YouTube channel and click “Subscribe.”
Poetry Box Christmas
We just sent a gorgeous Stafford Style Poetry Box out to Fresno, California. It will arrive by Christmas! Can't wait to see it mounted. We'll tell you more when it gets there.
Li Bai Bamboo Poetry Box Celebrates Chinese New Year
The latest design in Poetry Boxes will be attending many of the Chinese New Year celebrations at Lan Su Gardens. Poetry is a vital part of the gardens and Poetry Boxes make it easy to bring this foundational element into your garden. According to Chinese garden design and tradition there are five essential elements: water, stone, plants, architecture, and poetry. So come to the Lantern Viewing Ceremony and enjoy the splendor. Celebrations last until February 12th and poetry is featured on Thursdays throughout the year.
Li Bai Poetry Box with the Tower of Cosmic Reflections in the background. Coi!