The Invitation*

2018 Merit Award
By Ellie Osterloh, grade 9

Oh Death, come in and sit down by my side
Though your elusive white dress may deceive
You’re the Queen of Sorrow, changer of tides,
Not as the masses of people perceive.

I dare your subsequent waves to tempt me
Your presence inspires a fiery rage
Walking the dark road, your white light I see
Some declare you villain, few call you sage.

You riddle me, and know I won’t answer
But I can’t keep myself from wondering
Where’s hope with diagnosis of cancer?
And yet, the confusion is comforting.

I curse you, bless you, and know you will stay
But Death, for now, I send you on your way.

. . . . .
This poem was inspired by the loss of my mother to cancer two years ago.

. . . . .
*Copyright 2018 by Ellie Osterloh. Broadside illustrated by Christian Smith.

soon in Seattle

Gramma is an independent poetry press based in Seattle. Among its other activities, Gramma produces the Reading Series, a quarterly arts and literary event featuring local and national writers, performers, and artists of all disciplines.

On Saturday, October 6, 2018, The Gramma Reading Series #2 will feature poets Tyehimba Jess, Kaveh Akbar, and Anastacia Renée, along with Moonshine: A Cabaret performed by Au Collective and directed by Imana Gunawan. The Stranger’s Kim Selling will host. The event will be held at Seattle Central College’s Erickson Little Theatre off Broadway. Tickets are $12 and can be purchased online through Brown Paper Tickets.

last minute: hindsight

Somehow, the deadline for the annual Whatcom Writes seems to elude us until the last moment. So here we are again. This year’s Whatcom Reads selection is The Big Burn by Timothy Egan.

Whatcom Writes, an all-ages writing contest, invites writers of poetry, fiction, and nonfiction to explore the themes of year’s chosen book and to submit a single piece for consideration. This year’s theme is hindsight. The selected works are compiled into an anthology and a number of authors are invited to read at Village Books, usually in the spring.

So here’s the hard part: entries are due by midnight, Monday, October 1, 2018. It’s late, but it’s not too late. Read the guidelines.

breakfast with Nancy

Reader, best-selling author, librarian, and literary critic, Nancy Pearl is also a fierce advocate for the importance of literacy. Each year, she shares her list of favorite reads at a fundraising breakfast to support the Whatcom Literacy Council.

This year’s Literacy Breakfast will be held on Thursday, November 8, 2018, at 7:00am on the campus of Bellingham Technical College. Advance Registration of $11 is required to hold your seat (or $88 per table). Call (360) 752-8678 or email events@whatcomliteracy.org to reserve a seat.

poems for peace

You are invited to join peace-minded poets, musicians, and audience, as World Peace Poets celebrates its Sixth Annual Read-In on Saturday, October 6, 2018.

The event, plus potluck dinner, will be held at St. James Presbyterian Church (lower level) in Bellingham. Doors open at 5:00pm, potluck begins at 5:30pm, music starts at 6:00pm, and poets read their original peace poems and sing peace songs beginning at 6:15pm and continue until everyone has been heard.

Each poet has 5 minutes, each musician 6 minutes. If you would like to read/play/sing, sign up by Monday, October 1, 2018, by sending an email to worldpeacepoets@gmail.com. You will be assigned a time slot.

what are YOU reading?

It’s Banned Books Week. What are you reading? Here’s a 15-book (or play) introduction to Poetry’s Place in the History of Banned Books and below is an infographic showing last year’s ten most-banned books (click for larger version):

September 24

Just a quick reminder that today, September 24, is National Punctuation Day. May your apostrophes be warranted and your semicolons bloom.

(Poets, see Poets & Punctuation and Punctuation in Haiku.)

Meditations on Love*

2018 Walk Award
By Marie Eaton

What do I eat when you’re not in love?
Dry stick pasta.
Unsalted vegetables and
ten-day old carrots gone soft in the vege drawer.
No crunch. No bite.

All the lean, mean, cuisine,
standing by the sink with a plate for one.

Stones and sorrow.
Empty eggshells. The bird of love has flown.

I eat the words that closed your door.
I eat crow to say I’m sorry.

What do I eat when I’m not in love?
Solitary salmon at that white-tablecloth restaurant.
A glass of Sauvignon Blanc.
Savoring silence and no conversation.

Laughter served with linguine and lemon zest.
Big, boisterous dinners with friends,
filling the heart.

. . . . .
Marie Eaton, a retired faculty member from Fairhaven College, currently directs the Palliative Care Institute at Western Washington University. She also teaches creative non-fiction writing and songwriting at the Northwest Writer’s Weekend. http://www.nwwritersweekend.org

This poem began with a jump-start prompt in a writer’s group “What do I eat when I’m in love?” I had fun turning that prompt inside out.

. . . . .
*Copyright 2018 by Marie Eaton. Broadside illustrated by Kim Wulfestieg.

today in Amherst

Today, Saturday, September 22, 2018, in Amherst, Massachusetts, Emily Dickinson lovers of all ages are contributing their voices to the Emily Dickinson Poetry Marathon, a day-long marathon reading of all 1,789 poems by Emily Dickinson. Now in its 14th year, the Marathon is the cornerstone event of the Amherst Poetry Festival, which celebrates the literary legacy of the Pioneer Valley. The Marathon will take place from 6:00am to approximately 9:00pm at the Emily Dickinson Museum.

meanwhile, in Trafalgar Square

If you happen to be in London as you read this post, hurry over to Trafalgar Square to see “Please Feed the Lions,” an installation by artist Es Devlin that fuses design, poetry, and machine learning. Painted a hard-to-ignore fluorescent red, the piece invites passersby to “feed” the lion a word and then uses a deep learning algorithm developed by Ross Goodwin, creative technologist at Google, to compose a poem, which appears on a display in the lion’s mouth. At night, the poem’s evolving text is projected across the body of the lion and on Nelson’s Column.

Part of the London Design Festival, the interactive work will be on display through Sunday, September 23, 2018, only. Read more about the project and the lion’s daily poem on Google Arts & Culture.