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. 

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Li Bai Poetry Box with the Tower of Cosmic Reflections in the background. Coi!

Legendary Muralist Joe Cotter Celebrated with Poetry Box

Artist Joe Cotter (1949 - 2012), known for his public murals and advocacy, now has a Poetry Box. To acknowledge Cotter's legacy, Joanne Oleksiak and Murals of Portland chose this ironwood and mahogany box to hold information sheets at the Buckman Community Mural. You can find the Poetry Box with flyers explaining Cotter's achievements and the mural on Plaid Pantry's south-facing wall at the corner of SE 12th and Morrison.  Poetry Boxes is proud to honor Cotter's extensive work with Artback, Spiral Gallery, and McMenamins, and his key role in Portland's fight against media giant Clear Channel's attempt to curtail public art.

Poems for April

Spring is officially here. April, from the Roman Aprilis 'to open' is aptly named—the world seems to unfold. Coats are buried in closets while blooms push through to air and sun.

It's both National Poetry Month and Humor Month. Thailand and Cambodia celebrate the New Year. April hosts Earth Day and Arbor Day. The month seems to encompass a type of joy that embraces the sacred belief in rebirth, yet still makes room to celebrate the fool.

Enjoy this month's collection of poems. Now get out into the springtime.

For a Five-Year-Old, Fleur Adcock
End of April, Phillis Levin
Happiness, Raymond Carver
To Be Read Before Waking, David Cooke

Madeleine School Poetry Box Unveiled

After much hard work and artistic rigor, the art classes at Madeleine School and teacher Ida Galash completed decorating the post for their new Poetry Box. Craftsman David Cooke mounted the mahogany and ironwood Poetry Box on the post they adorned with pyrographic images of native plants.  Stop by to read the poems they chose and to check out their beautiful monument to poetry. (3123 NE 24th Avenue • Portland, OR 97212 )

Poems for February, Featuring Flounder

February poems are now available for download! We celebrate Black History Month, Valentine's Day and the quiet of mid-winter.

This month's poets include Natasha Trethewey, US Poet Laureate from 2012 to 2014 and winner of the 2006 Nobel Prize in Poetry.  Her work explores "memory and the racial legacy of America" and her "own mixed-race experience in the deep South”. She writes both poetry and prose, combining modern and traditional forms to create rich works full of imagery and history.

Read more about Natasha Tretheway at  Poetry Foundation.

Flounder, Natasha Trethewey
I Look at the World, Langston Hughes
Caged Bird, Maya Angelou
When You Are Old, William Butler Yeats
February, Jack Collom