Congrats to contest winners, thanks for wonderful meeting

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Congratulations again to the winners of the 2011 Naomi Cherkofsky Memorial Contestaward. We were blessed that so many of the winners were able to attend the NSPF meeting and open mic in honor of National Poetry Month last Saturday, April 16, at the Beverly Public Library. Awards went to:

  1. Lee Eric Freedman of Swampscott won first place for his poem “I Salute Myself,” a whimsical re-interpretation of Whitman’s “Song of Myself” retold from this unique poet’s musical dynasticism. We’ll see if we can’t get his permission to publish the piece here.
  2. Suellen Wedmore, of Rockport, earned second place for her poem “At Foley Stadium: Afghanstan-Bound”, as well as an honorable mention prize.  With her own son having served overseas on three tours, Wedmore says she penned her winning poem after reading a newspaper article regarding a gathering of hundreds of supports who gathered in Worcester’s Foley Stadium last year as a send-off for more than 600 service members in what the Boston Globe called “the largest deployment of Massachusetts National Guard troops since World War II.”
  3. C.H. Coleman, of Salem, earned third place for his poem “Absolute Last” which imagines the procreations efforts of the last man and woman on the planet and bizzare prediciament of needing assistance. Coleman, like Wedmore, also earned an honorable mention.

Additional honorable mention prizes were given to Diane Giardi, of Gloucester, for her poem “As Snow Falls”, Claire Keyes, of Marblehead, for “Sanctuary”, Richard Samuel Davis, of Byfield, for “Heaven to Heaven”, Maryellen Letarte, of Lunrnburg, for “Dragonfly”, and to Lucille Morgan Wilson of Des Moines, IA.

Don’t forget, the next NSPF meeting will be held Saturday, May 21, 11 a.m., at the library!

Don’t forget about Saturday’s reading and award ceremony

Poetry,

Greetings everyone,

I hope you are all looking forward to the annual Naomi Cherkofsky Memorial Contest award celebration and open mic in honor of National Poetry Month. We’ll be meeting this coming Saturday, April 16, 11 a.m., at the Beverly Public Library. This is always a joyous and entertaining event as members gather to celebrate the gift of poetry and congratulate our talented contest winners. So tell your friends and relatives, spread the word, polish up some of your best work and head on down.

This year’s winners include:

  • C. H. Coleman
  • Richard Samuel Davis
  • Lee Eric Freeman
  • Diane Giardi
  • Claire Keyes
  • Maryellen Letarte
  • Suellen  Wedmore
  • Lucille Morgan Wilson

Congratulations everyone!

I also wanted to let you know about a few other poetry events that are taking place this week.

The Gloucester Writers (GWC) hosts a local poets reading tonight Wednesday, April 13, at 7:30 p.m., at 126 East Main St., featuring readings by a few NSPF friends including: Nathan Cohen, Ruthanne (Rufus) Collinson, Ruth Maassen, and Sage Walcott.

The Tin Box Poets hosts their 13th annual open mic and National Poetry Month celebration at the Swampscott Library on Thursday, April 14, at 6:30 p.m. (doors/sign-up starts at 6 p.m.) This annual event draws spoken word artists of all abilities and disciplines from Swampscott, Marblehead, the North Shore, and beyond. The Tin Box Poets’ goal is to promote and encourage the appreciation of poetry in our lives.

Also on Thursday, April 14, at 7:30 p.m., at the Paul M. Scott Library in the main building of Montserrat College of Art, NSPF member (and contest winner) Claire Keyes hosts a poetry reading and fundraiser for the Massachusetts Poetry Festival featuring the work of Boston resident Fred Marchant and Rowley resident Carla Panciera. Suggested donation is $20, $10 students. For additional information, visit http://masspoetry.org/2011/03/13/a-pre-festival-celebratory-reading-and-fund-raiser-on-april-14/.

On Sunday, April 17, from 3-5 p.m., Elizabeth McKim hosts a house concert of Poetry/Story/Song at her loft in Lynn. The event features Kato Mele, Rozi Theohari, Eliz McKim, Don White, Walnut, Mike Mele, and others. Tickets are $15. Reservations are available by e-mail at jocelynalmy@tlguts.com or call 781-715-1445.

In honor of National Poetry Month

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There are a plethora of activities to celebrate National Poetry Month. Besides the one hosted by the Massachusetts Poetry Festival folk on April 14 (see prior post), the Tin Box Poets are also hosting an event that evening. Here’s the scoop:

Come celebrate National Poetry Month with Tin Box Poets of Swampscott’s 13TH annual open mic. The Tin Box Poets of Swampscott will host their 13th annual open mic reading on Thursday, April 14th, at 6:30pm. This annual event draws spoken word artists of all abilities and disciplines from Swampscott, Marblehead, the entire North Shore and beyond. The Tin Box Poets goal is to promote and encourage the appreciation of poetry in our lives.  
Hope to see you there!
Thursday, April 14, 2011: 6:30 pm – 8:00 pm
Open mic for poetry, and spoken word
(a song if you desire – please provide your own instrument)
Doors open at 6:00 pm for SIGN UP. Reading @ 6:30 pm
Public welcome and All AGES, free admission, refreshments, accessible
Swampscott Public Library, 61 Burrill Street, Swampscott, MA (2nd floor)
More info: swa@noblenet.org, 781-596-8867.
 
*** Due to time restrictions we do ask for a limit of 2 pages or 4 minutes for all open micers. If we have time, we always have a second round. Please be kind, let everyone have their moment in the spotlight. ****
——————————————————————————————————————————————-The next week, we have this information from AGNI Magazine (agni@bu.edu)

CCAE’s Writer’s Life Series

 

Our popular series for writers and readers continues. Join us for three Wednesday evenings of informal discussions with local writers, focusing on a) anthologies and group publishing;  b) writing about one’s own family; and c) narrative journalism.
A) When:    Wednesday, April 13th, 2011 at 8:00pm

Who:     Doug Holder, Dan Mazur, and Barbara Ross

What:    Anthologies and Group Publishing: Learn about what’s behind group publishing from three writers who

        have both edited and contributed to anthologies of poetry, comics, and  crime stories.

Where:   56 Brattle Street, Harvard Square , Cambridge , MA , 02238 -9113

Price:   $6

Phone:  617-547-6789 x1

Web:    http://www.ccae.org

 

B) When:    Wednesday, April 20th, 2011 at 8:00pm

Who:     John Freeman, Katrina Kenison, and Marianne Leone

What:   Writing About Your Family: Respecting Boundaries, Taking Risks – An intimate discussion of the choices, challenges,                              and rewards these authors faced when writing about their loved ones.

Where:  56 Brattle Street , Harvard Square , Cambridge , MA , 02238 -9113

Price: $6

Phone:  617-547-6789 x1

Web:    http://www.ccae.org

C) When:    Wednesday, April 27th, 2011 at 8:00pm

Who:     Ethan Gilsdorf, David Valdes Greenwood, and Paige Williams

What:   Narrative Journalism: Not Just The Facts, Story Too – Whether it be immersion journalism or creative non-fiction, this deeply personal genre transforms everyday reporting into a captivating novel. Discover the worlds inhabited and paths traveled by these writers.

Where:   56 Brattle Street, Cambridge , MA , 02238-9113

Price:   $6

Phone:  617-547-6789 x1

Web:    http://www.ccae.org

—————————————————————————————————————————————————————– And, most importantly, from the standpoint of the North Shore Poets’ Forum, is our own event, on Saturday, April 16, 11 a.m. to 1 or 2 p.m., at the Beverly Public Library. Hope to see you there.

 

 

A festival invite

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 Claire Keyes, who is well known on the North Shore for her own poetry and for her years as a professor at Salem State, sends along this invitation:

You are cordially invited to a poetry reading and fundraiser for the Massachusetts Poetry Festival on Thursday, April 14th at 7:30 p.m. at the Paul M. Scott Library in the main building of Montserrat College of Art,
23 Essex St. Beverly.  Fred Marchant of Boston and Carla Panciera of Rowley will be the featured readers.   Donation: $20 or $10 for students.
   You can read more about Fred and Carla on the Masspoetry.org website. Here is the link:

http://masspoetry.org/2011/03/13/a-pre-festival-celebratory-reading-and-fund-raiser-on-april-14/

We will also have some scintillating raffle items for the poetry-obsessed, so please bring your wallets!

Claire Keyes
cjkeyes@verizon.net

National Poetry Month

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 April is National Poetry Month, and the North Shore Poets’ Forum is celebrating on Saturday, April 16, with readings by the winners of our Naomi Cherkofsky contest followed by an open mic. We have been doing this for probably six or seven or eight (how many?) years, and it has always been a wonderful time. We hope you will join us at the Beverly Public Library, from 11 a.m. to about 2 p.m. Light refreshments will be served. And, if you write poetry, please bring up to three to share.

In the meantime, you can discover new poets and enjoy a poem a day in celebration of National Poetry Month by clicking on this website, provided by Knopf Poetry, a division of Random House:

http://poem-a-day.knopfdoubleday.com/2011/04/01/welcome-to-poetry-month/?ref=poemaday_email

Enjoy!

Poetry reading coming up!

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April is National Poetry Month, and once again the North Shore Poets’ Forum is celebrating with readings by the winners of its annual Naomi Cherkofsky contest followed by open mic on Saturday, April 16, 11 a.m., at the Beverly Public Library.

Just to keep you posted, we had a fantastic meeting last week. Melissa Varnavas presented a program on inspiration which was, well, inspiring! Many of those present came up with some pretty great raw material for polished poems. As Melissa reminded us, quoting Thomas Edison, I think, genius is 10 percent inspiration and 90 percent work.

And, all of us at the meeting hope you will join us for the annual Poetry Reading next month, which is National Poetry Month. The Forum’s event is always a great time — a time for sharing poetry, food and friendship.  We look forward to greeting you there.

Updates from the Forum

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 Our next meeting is Saturday, March 19, at the Beverly Public Library, 11 a.m. to 1 or 2 p.m. Melissa Varnavas will  give a workshop about finding your creative inspiration. 

Melissa received her MFA in poetry last summer and is full of fresh ideas and breadth of knowledge. She had given a terrific program this fall on imagery. Here’s hoping you will all come.

We expect to have time to have gentle critiques of one another’s poetry, so bring along a pesky poem or two to share.

This has been a tough winter, both in terms of raging weather and of personal losses. I offer two poems for contemplation — one that shows anger with, the other acceptance of, the end of things.

The following poem speaks specifically about the poet’s father, but it is universal in its plea…

Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night

     by Dylan Thomas

Do not go gentle into that good night,
Old age should burn and rave at close of day;
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.
…
Though wise men at their end know dark is right,
Because their words had forked no lightning they
Do not go gentle into that good night.
…
Good men, the last wave by, crying how bright
Their frail deeds might have danced in a green bay,
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.
…
Wild men who caught and sang the sun in flight,
And learn, too late, they grieved it on its way,
Do not go gentle into that good night.
…
Grave men, near death, who see with blinding sight
Blind eyes could blaze like meteors and be gay,
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.
…
And you, my father, there on the sad height,
Curse, bless, me now with your fierce tears, I pray.
Do not go gentle into that good night.
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

….

This next poem is so quiet, with the repetitions reminiscent of prayer.

Let Evening Come

By Jane Kenyon

Let the light of late afternoon
shine through chinks in the barn, moving
up the bales as the sun moves down.
…
Let the cricket take up chafing
as a woman takes up her needles
and her yarn. Let evening come.
…
Let dew collect on the hoe abandoned
in long grass. Let the stars appear
and the moon disclose her silver horn.
…
Let the fox go back to its sandy den.
Let the wind die down. Let the shed
go black inside. Let evening come.
…
To the bottle in the ditch, to the scoop
in the oats, to air in the lung
let evening come.
…
Let it come, as it will, and don’t
be afraid. God does not leave us
comfortless, so let evening come.

…

Missing Gertrude

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In addition to our friend Amy Dengler, we recently lost our good friend Gertrude Callis, for whom there will be a memorial service on Saturday, March 12, 2011, at 10 a.m., at the Swampscott Church of Spiritualism, Burrill Street, Swampscott. 

Her family invites you to join them.

The church is next to the Swampscott Public Library and across the street from the Swampscott Fire Station.

Melissa Varnavas is writing a poem to be published soon in this blog in memory of Gertrude, who gave to new poets and new members the encouragement to stand up and be heard. Those of us who knew her feel lucky, even while we miss her.

Gertrude has not been coming to meetings much in the last few years because of failing health. Mostly, she just didn’t want to be a bother to anyone. She hated to talk about her ailments, wanted nothing to do with doctor-talk or health advisories. She was a stubborn, proud, independent, feisty woman with a sweet, soft voice and a huge heart.

When you looked up, there she was — in your corner, smiling and sending good wishes your way.

Thanks, Gertrude.

Remembering Amy

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UPDATE: one more poem added, from Marcia Molay.

The North Shore Poets’ Forum gathered at the Beverly Public Library on Saturday, Feb. 19, for its usual February meeting, but with a different plan than usual: we would spend part of the time remembering our dear friend Amy Dengler, who died the week before.

Some of our members had gone to the Celebration of her Life the prior Thursday morning in Gloucester, and were able to share the beauty of the service, which was planned entirely by Amy.

“I felt as though Amy was my hostess,” said Beverlee Barnes about the care and attention to detail evident throughout, which was typical of the graciousness intrinsic to Amy.

Claire Keyes had felt a tiny bit reconciled to Amy’s death when various people chosen by Amy read some of her poems. Keyes then led Forum members in reading from Amy’s book “Between Leap and Landing,” so that we all would know Amy is always with us — in our memories and in her poems. (See some excerpts from her book on this website under “Introducing Amy Dengler.”)

Amy had also put together another volume of poetry, which we are hoping to receive soon and share with some of you, if her family permits. In the meantime, here is one of Amy’s poems that was read at the celebration of Amy’s life, which Roberta Hung has forwarded.

Valentine

It was only a button, a device

to fasten one side to another yet

it kept reminding me that my winter coat

was missing its middle fastener.  The coat,

still draped over the kitchen chair,

was one button short, brown thread trailing

from the empty space like a memo:

get to this soon.  Instead

I wore the blue jacket with the zipper.

On Wednesday while I was out,

he found the sewing kit, brown thread, a needle,

and reattached the button, size of a quarter

and made of bone or horn or something durable

that didn’t mind fingers, didn’t mind the in and out

of its intention, didn’t mind the simple work

of holding things together.

 

                                                            February 2008

                                                            Amy Dengler

……………………..

 Here is a poem by Roberta that she shared with Amy and the other Forum members at our annual summer outing in Gloucester:

 

Shelf Life

 My bulging bookshelf threatens to mutiny

      against the crowded conditions.

Some amigos will have to go

      where expatriots get sent.

I hope they’ll be valued in their new homes.

 …

A fellow poet recently humbled to Amy Dengler.

He’d paid a pittance at a resale

      for her book, Between Leap and Landing.

His apologia suggested that he rescued it

      from landing in the fire.

 …

Personally, I think it leapt to a new shelf

      to set more hearts aflame.

Good books are like the phoenix.

Amy, mon amie, my copy is a signed keepsake

      of a lovely mentor and friend.

                                                             4/17/10

                                                            Roberta Hung

 

And, we also have the poem to which Roberta is referring, by Lee Eric Freedman:

 
 

 

 

 

AMY AT ANY PRICE
                                          For Amy Dengler

I purchased your book, Amy Dengler.
On Saturday, the final day of             
Swampscott Public Library’s used book sale
when all remaining titles are
reduced to 10¢ apiece.
… 
Shelved in the section “Poetry & Essays”
among copies of Mary Oliver, Charles Simic,
Vincent Ferrini and Czeslaw Milosz,
Between Leap and Landing
lands in my hands.
… 
I shudder, when upon examination
the cover price reveals itself: $8.95.
A sargasso sense of guilt—
should I tell you what I paid?
Will you demand restitution?
Call your lawyer?
 …
Could you please autograph it for me?
I try to laugh it off
but comedy begets tragedy begets fear,
like biting one’s tongue,
that familiar salty blood taste.
 …
Look at it this way my poet friend
I rescued your book.
Snatched it from the fiery furnace
the great maw of death
delivered it from the killing floor.
 …
Please forgive me Amy,
at any price
your poems leap into my hands, enter my heart.
Your skein of geese
going somewhere.

 (© 11/16/2009: Lee Eric Freedman, Tin Box Poets – Swampscott, MA) 

A Remembrance of Amy Dengler
          By Marcia Molay

Amy wrote poetry that made you smile.
There was a message but it never
hammered you; instead it made you aware
of daily tasks as you use simple kitchen tools…
a mixer, a chair, a spoon to lick.
…
She teased that she wrote about
the usual poet’s themes: crows, the moon,
utensils, family.  Despite her persistent,
recurrent illness, she wrote poetry that
delighted and read them with a soft,
soothing voice that made us smile back at her.
…
Her generosity was legend.  Encouraging
less experienced writers was part of her character.
No worry about who would shine,
she helped, based on her long experience with words
and her intuition about what the new poet
could absorb.
 … 

 
 
Amy was a blessing to those of us who knew her. We wish her well on her new journey. CKO


Goodbye to a dear friend

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Amy Dengler is one of our featured poets (see her poems on this blog), and she has proven herself over and over again to be both a wonderful poet and a wonderful woman. Those of us who were lucky enough to share some time on this earth with her are all very sad to learn that Amy died this weekend.

I refer you to her obituary in the Gloucester Times.  We will miss her so much.