NPM 50 State Tour: Shakin' It in Missouri

It's time to face facts. 50 States -- 30 days? It's April 27 and we're only on state 24! What was I thinking?

We need to add a few weeks to National Poetry Month if we're ever going to make it to Hawaii.

For now, let's get on with our National Poetry Month tour. Today, we're visiting Missouri and its poet laureate, Walter Bargen.

Two of the poems I read by Bargen deal with weather. It seems the Show Me State is no stranger to Mother Nature's extremes.

According to the site Legends of America, "The most powerful earthquake to strike the United States occurred in 1811, centered in New Madrid, Missouri. The quake shook more than one million square miles, and was felt as far as 1,000 miles away."

Tornadoes are rare things in Maryland, where I live (this one is in Missouri)...

so I love the details in Bargen's poem, "Harmony Tornado." Here he is reading the poem:


His poem "Ice Bound" at Poetry Foundation also sets extreme weather against the backdrop of every day life. You can read it here.

Next up is Arkansas, 25th state ( 6/15/1836) and the halfway point of our tour. Whew!