a poetry walk surprise

Here are the bare facts: Christopher Luna is the first poet laureate for Clark County, Washington. Poet, publisher, visual artist, writing coach, teacher, and editor, he is the co-founder of Printed Matter Vancouver, the Ghost Town Poetry Open Mic, and Poetry Moves, a program that places poems by local students and adults on buses in the C-Tran system serving the county. (Among other achievements.)

The Vine is Clark County, Washington’s bus rapid transit system.

Yesterday, Christopher Luna posted (on Facebook) the following true story:

Today my dear friend and employer, Leah Jackson, took me on a “field trip.” She would not tell me where we were going or why. We hopped on the Vine, C-Tran’s newly launched BRT, and took pictures of the art that has been installed at all the Vine stops. At first I thought that this was what she wanted to show me, since she was on the committee that handled the art for the new bus line. I was not prepared for the real reason for our trip. When I saw that C-Tran had decided to include my name and one of my poems at the Vancouver Mall Transit Center, I was astounded. I was completely speechless, which anyone who knows me can tell you is rare. One of the things that makes this surprise honor so special is that the poem that was chosen describes a very momentous conversation I had with my son, Angelo Luna. Thank you to everyone in the community who has supported me and my activities over the years. There are no words to describe my gratitude.

Nice!