NPM 50 State Tour: Iowa

Iowa -- 29th state, 12/28/1846 -- is a late-comer to the state poet laureate concept. The position was created in 1999.

Mary Swander has held the post since 2009. She's a graduate of the famed Iowa Writers Workshop. I love this description on her website, "She lives in an old Amish schoolhouse, raises geese, goats, and a large organic garden, and plays the banjo."

Swander's most recent book The Girls on the Roof  is "a Mississippi River flood narrative." Sounds interesting. Here is a description of the poems. You'll find a looong video of Swander on youtube, but it's worth it. She plays her banjo and reads from the book.

Swander is working with a puppet theater troupe to create a staged production of the story. Are our state poets laureate an impressive bunch, or what?

Here she is reading "Heaven" for the Dead Poets Video project -- which you have absolutely got to visit. Modern poets reading at dead poets gravesites. Wow -- another NPM Tour discovery.

"Heaven" By Mary Swander from ChiefFallingLeaf on Vimeo.

I'm going to go check out some more of those graveside readings. Have a great weekend! Next post is an interview with Wisconsin P.L. Marilyn L. Taylor.

NPM 50 State Tour: Texas

Texas -- our 28th state -- has had a poet laureate since 1932.


But they've also had some lean poetry years. In the 80s and 90s, the Lone Star State was often laureate-less. They got back on track in 2003, and since that time the P.L. has been a regular, annual appointment.

Texas' state Poet Laureate for 2010 is Karla K. Morton. Here is an interview on Youtube.

Like Florida's P.L. (see the previous post) she has a Wow! project. Morton's Wee Cowrin' Timorous Beastie is, according to her website, "an original Scottish epic poem produced as a Book/CD project with Canadian composer Howard Baer."

Take a listen to the wonderful Celtic music on her site.

I love the edgy humor in Morton's poem "When Texas No Longer Fits in the Glove Box." Using a map of Texas as metaphor for a larger-than-life man -- hot stuff.

When Texas No Longer Fits in the Glove Box
By Karla K. Morton

Once you unfold a road map of Texas, your world is changed.
Towns like Falfurrias, Carthage, and Madill suddenly become
part of your life and once you see them, you can’t go back to
not knowing them. You have to go there, even it it’s just
with your eyes—or your finger—tracing those
crow’s feet county roads into unexplored territory.
That’s how knowledge works. That’s how knowing works.
Life is expanded; there’s no going back.
There’s no refolding the map.

It’s like meeting an alarmingly charming man—
discovering his dangerous detours and thrilling new paths,
finding unforeseen forks and magnificent natural beauty.
You’ll look up at him and know that the crinkly arch between his eyes
goes from Childress up to Amarillo, then back down to Muleshoe;
that the whites of his nails reach from Huntsville to Jasper;
that his green eyes encompass the metroplex—
From Ft. Worth to Denton to Dallas.

And you can’t help but imagine that the crooked hairline
beneath his navel would run all the way down Highway 281...

I don't know about you, but I'm blushing. Go ahead and read the rest of the poem while I fan my face.

My Texan hot mama friends (Michelle, Dana, Betty), I'm dedicating this post to you!

National Poetry Month ends today, but my tour doesn't. We're on to Iowa next. Let's hope we make it to state #50 before the summer solstice.

NPM 50 State Tour: Florida

Happy Poetry Friday!

Are you ready to say goodbye to National Poetry Month? I'm not. We still have a way to go on our 50 State Tour of Poets Laureate.

Florida became the 27th state on March 3, 1845. In 1928, it instituted a poet laureate program.

The Sunshine State's poet laureate is a lifetime post. So, despite being an 82-year-old program, there have only been three Floridian poets laureate. Dr. Edmund Skellings has held the job since 1980.

Skellings has won awards for his blend of technology and poetry including the Videographer Crystal Award of Excellence for a collection of 3D animated poetry, Word Songs, in 2002.

Here is his video-poem from Word Songs, "Incantation."




Unexpected discoveries like Skellings' work have made my National Poetry Month Tour an amazing project. Search www.youtube.com for animated poems created by Skellings' students. Cool stuff.


Sorry we didn't make it to Hawaii before the end of April, gang. On this blog, at least, NPM is taking over May while I finish out the 50 State Tour.

Today's Poetry Friday host is Mary Ann at Great Kid Books. Stop by for some good reads and the Poetry Friday blog roll.

NPM 50 State Tour: Michigan

Michigan had a state poet 'til fifty-nine.
When Edgar Guest died, they said, "We'll be just fine.
Do we need an official poet to write verse --
another person we'd have to reimburse?"

The Wolverine State joins nine other states on my Poetic Wall of Shame.

Their state Senate passed a bill in 2005 establishing a state poet laureate position. But it never got through the House.

Here's the low-down on Michigan's tale of poetic apathy.

NPM 50 State Tour: Arkansas

Arkansas is the 25th state (June 18, 1836). "The Natural State" has had a poet laureate since 1923!

The current state poet laureate is Peggy Vining. There's a bio of Vining here. Eighty-year-old Vining is working on her first collection of poetry, Tethered to the Moment, according to the blog Writing Without Paper.

Which brings me to an interesting point.

Some state poets laureate are Pulitzer Prize winners, respected literary critics, professors of English. Others are known only within their state's literary community.

The Encyclopedia of Arkansas website says, "In Arkansas, as elsewhere, the title of poet laureate is generally awarded on grounds not restricted to fame or literary eminence. None of the best-known or most distinguished Arkansas poets has received the title.

"The term 'laureate' refers to the ancient custom of crowning a person with a wreath made from leaves of the laurel tree. In antiquity, military heroes, athletic champions, and winners in singing, music, and poetry contests typically received this honor.

"In modern times, monarchs, governing bodies, or other organizations have named poets laureate, often in recognition of a significant talent but sometimes for political or other reasons."

What do you think? Is it better to have a poet laureate who is nationally known with several books and awards to her name, or is a locally active author -- maybe one whose poetry reflects the region -- what you'd prefer? I'd love to hear comments on this!

Here is the beginning of Vining's long poem about the history and landscape of her home state.

Arkansas, The Natural State

I stood today on top of Petit Jean

And felt a kindredship to all I found,

And I, intrigued by such a lovely scene,

Was grateful for the beauties that abound.

The spirit of a mountain miss was host,

Her phantom figure hovered, light as wind,

And I became enchanted by her ghost,

As we stood on the ledge at river’s bend.

I asked her of her legend and its truth;

Of how she stowed away to sail from France,

Of how she cropped her hair; became uncouth,

To give her love and lover one more chance.

            “It is all truth; the future will proclaim

            My spirit guards this mount which bears my name.”

 

Then, as we talked, my personage subdued,

And I became, as Petit Jean, a ghost,

And with uncanny knowledge I reviewed

Historic deeds of others who could boast,

Of coming to this great green state to live;

To homestead and to plow their plots of land;

To mine the hills; to hunt the woods and give

Their very lives to make it far more grand.

I spoke to men who also came to look

For ways of life upon the river’s road;

They pushed their crafts to every shallow nook

And rounded bends of hardship with each load.

            The Indians told me their tales of woe,

            Of how they battled as both friend and foe.

 

They told me how De Soto searched for gold

And, trudging through the swamps to look for it,

As upward, through the mountains and the cold,

He traded with the natives, matching wit.

La Salle then came to claim the Arkansas

But left to join another group of men,

De Tonty came to start, as did John Law,

A river post where trading could begin.

These men with whom I talked could really boast

Of being first to settle on this land,

Of fighting long and hard to save the Post

Where then was housed the laws and all command.

            My spirit saw the past and lived it through,

            A vision of the old when it was new.

 

As history passes, the seasons came in view,

And time and space and beauty knew no date.

I saw each month in its most brilliant hue

And gazed at it as if I tempted fate.

 I looked at Spring and thought it surely best,

For everywhere the land was newly green...

 

You can find the rest of the poem here. 

 

Sorry no pix today -- trying to figure out the new Blogger dashboard. Grr.

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!