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Winter
2009 |
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President's
Message
Working the Angles
According to Aristotle, a speaker’s effectiveness depends upon appeal to three categories: ethos (the speaker’s trustworthiness), pathos (the listener’s interest), and logos (the subject’s validity). You may have heard this referred to as the “rhetorical triangle,” with each concept at one vertex. Modern writing teachers tend to simplify this triangle to writer, reader, and subject. That’s certainly how I encountered the graphic in college composition courses, and it has been handy for tackling a multitude of writing projects.
Basically, this triangle predicts that the more distant any two of the three
vertices, the more difficult the rhetorical situation for the writer. Let’s consider a simple diary entry, for example: The writer, reader, and subject are all effectively the same, making the triangle very small and the writing task very easy. Now imagine that the diarist is writing an entry about a lecture in advanced particle physics. Assuming the person is not a particle physicist, while the distance between writer and reader remains the same, the distance to the subject is much greater, making the task more difficult. Next, imagine that our writer must compose a report about the same lecture for a complete stranger. Not only is the subject distant, the lack of knowledge about the reader adds to the difficulty, making the writing task almost impossible.
What does this all have to do with poetry? From my experience as both a writer and reader, I’d say that poetry tends to be revelatory of the inner person. The poet experiences something outward that instigates an exploration inward, and then attempts to capture the resulting revelation in words. Beginning poets may simply scratch the surface, in effect writing a diary entry. More experienced poets typically plumb more deeply, increasing the distance between writer and subject, and end up with more unique results.
However, even more experienced poets too often neglect the third vertex of the rhetorical triangle. Some perhaps assume that poetry is meant to be obscure, and they leave it to the reader to figure out. Others are so detailed in their revelation that no room is left for the reader to interact with the poem. Too often, I believe, the problem is simply that the poet doesn’t really have an intended reader in mind. The intensely personal nature of crafting a poem has precluded imagining a recipient other than the poet him- or herself.
You may have heard me say that I come from blue-collar roots, and I’d like to bring some poetry back to the blue-collar crowd. Recently I wrote a poem to my wife to celebrate our anniversary, and had it delivered to her place of employment. One of her coworkers read it and remarked, “Why can’t that boy write in plain English?” I got the ethos and the logos right but failed on the pathos. Sorry, Aristotle.
Sincerely,
Les |
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Next deadline: February 5, 2010
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9556 Upper 205th Street West
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(952) 985-5375
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Welcome
to the following new members who have joined since the last Museletter
issue:
Mary Jane Gabrielsen
|
Riverwoods, IL |
| Beth Ellen Jack |
Huntington Bch, CA |
| Carl Merola |
Hancock |
| Jann Merry |
Hartford |
| Jamie Lynn Morris |
Onalaska |
| Judith Ristow |
Menomonie |
| Gary Robbins |
LaCrosse |
And welcome back to these people who have
rejoined after a brief absence:
Charles Cantrell
|
Madison |
| Ron Czerwien |
Madison |
| Rusty McKenzie |
Menasha |
| Andrea Potos |
Madison |
New
member inquiries should be directed to Gillian Nevers, the Membership Chair, at 2022 Jefferson Street, Madison, WI 53711, (608)255-5080, nevers@wisc.edu. Join us!
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News from the Governor’s Poet Laureate Commission
June 15, 2009
Dear Fellow Poets,
As the brand-new WFOP member of the Commission and representing all of us throughout the state, I want to share the accomplishments and ambitious schedule of our Poet Laureate, Marilyn Taylor, with you. Not only has she already reached out to many areas of the state through a variety of small and large venues, but her upcoming summer and fall schedule is packed.
It is Marilyn’s intention, with the full support of the Commission, to expand her geographic reach across the state through both cultural and civic venues. We are particularly interested in expanding Marilyn’s presence in the central, western and northern areas of the state.
We also hope that working together, WFOP and the Commission can help arrange her participation in some important local civic and business events during 2010 in addition to literary settings. It is anticipated that reaching out beyond the poetry and literary community will generate press coverage that will further elevate awareness of the poet laureate position and the importance of promoting poetry to all people in Wisconsin.
If your community has any major business conventions or events as well as literary festivals upcoming this winter or spring that would be interested in featuring the poet laureate as an event opener, featured reader, etc., please let your regional vice-president know. Your regional VPs can forward suggestions to me as your WFOP Commission representative, and we will try to accommodate requests as much as Marilyn’s 2010 schedule will allow.
Yours truly,
David Scheler |
Poet Laureate Calendar of Events
Wisconsin’s new Poet Laureate, Marilyn Taylor, will be participating in several activities. Mark your calendar and check out some of the events.
December 16, 2009, 11:30 a.m. – Lunchtime reading, The Milwaukee Club
February 5, 2010 – Reading participant, Madison Museum of Contemporary Art
March 13, 2010 – Judge, Poetry Out Loud competition, Madison
March 20, 2010 – Reading participant, Verse Wisconsin launch, Madison
April 23, 2010 – Reading and presentation, WFOP Conference, Green Bay
May 19, 2010 – Workshop, Chippewa Valley Writers Group, Menomonie
June 18, 2010 – Panelist, Waukesha Book Festival, Waukesha
September 12-17, 2010 – Bjorklunden workshop (1 week)
October 10-15, 2010 – Bjorklunden workshop (1 week)
October 16, 2010 – Workshop facilitator: Allwriters Studio, Waukesha |
|
What's
Happening in Your Region?
Central-Fox
Valley Region
Bill Gillard, Central-Fox Valley Regional VP
1478 Midway Road
Menasha, WI 54952-1224
bill.gillard@uwc.edu
Michael Belongie has donated an
electronic pdf file of his fifth collection
of 52 poems, Now Is All We Have, for
use of the campaign fund of the new
monastery building.
The electronic layout of Now Is All
We Have was designed by Christine Falk
and includes nature photos by naturalist
Nancy Schlimgen.
Michael’s pdf file is available at www.benedictinewomen.org.
East
Region
Janet Leahy, East Regional Co-VP
13480 W. Fountain Drive
New Berlin, WI 53151-3968
leahyja@earthlink.net
|
Carolyn Vargo, East Regional Co-VP
6147 West Stack Circle
Milwaukee, WI 53219-3054
vargocj@execpc.com |
Barbara Bache-Wiig read her poetry
at a memorial service at Avalon Square
in Waukesha.
Mary Jo Balistreri, Janet Leahy,
Susan Kileen, Judy Kolosso and Katy
Phillips had poems published in Empty
Shoes, an anthology of poetry about the
homeless. Janet also had a poem
published in the fall issue of Wisconsin
People and Ideas, as part of the
magazine’s annual poetry contest.
Dennis Idzikowski was among six
local poets who read and contributed to
a poetry program at Washington DuBois
Christian Leadership Academy, a K-6
choice school in Milwaukee.
submitted by
Carolyn Vargo and Janet Leahy, East Regional
Co-VPs
Mary Jo Balistreri had two poems
published in the fall issue of Spindrift, a
journal out of Seattle, and one poem in
Hummingbird. She was the featured poet
in Bellowing Ark with five poems
published and had her poem, “Canticle
...” published on YourDailyPoem.com.
She participated in a reading on Saturday
September 12th for a women’s shelter
and read on September 19th at a local
food pantry.
Mid-Central
Region
Joan
Johannes, Mid-Central Regional VP
800 Ver Bunker Avenue
Port Edwards, WI 54469
joanjeff@wctc.net
Members of the Mid-Central
Wisconsin WFOP region who read from
the calendar at McMillan Library in
Wisconsin Rapids included Linda Aschbrenner, Barb Cranford, Cathy
Conger, Bruce Dethlefsen, Jeffrey
Johannes, Joan Wiese Johannes,
Mary Lou Judy, Jeanette Lindelhof, and Jim Pollock.
Barb Cranford held her 33rd allday,
poem-making workshop at her home
on October 24th. Among the attendees
was Jeanette Lindelof. Linda
Aschbrenner and Lou Roach took part
in absentia. On November 5th Barb read
from her new book, This Blind Journey,
at the Original Voice at the Coloma
Hotel.
Bruce Dethlefsen was the featured
reader at Coloma and St. Norbert’s
Abbey in DePere. He had poems
published in the Empty Shoes anthology
and the premiere issue of Recovering the
Self Journal.
Cathy Conger won the 2009 Jade
ring prize for humorous poetry, as well
as 3rd prize in the same category, from
the Wisconsin Regional Writer’s
Association at the September conference
in Eau Claire.
Jeffrey Johannes and Joan Wiese
Johannes read their poems at the
dedication of the current issue of Fox
Cry Review in Appleton in October.
Barb Cranford also had a poem selected
for the 2009 issue. Also in October,
Jeffrey and Joan Wiese Johannes read
from their award-winning poems, drew
from their experience as judges, and
shared judges’ notes at the Wisconsin
Rapids Cultural Center, followed by a
discussion about the qualities literary
journal editors and judges look for in
poems.
Joan Wiese Johannes won the John
and Miriam Morris chapbook contest
sponsored by Alabama Poetry Society.
She also had poems accepted in Verse
Wisconsin.
Linda Aschbrenner and Marsh River
Editions, in cooperation with the
Wisconsin Poet Laureate Commission,
published a second printing of the
chapbook Wisconsin Poets Laureate, featuring the poetry of Marilyn Taylor,
Denise Sweet, and Ellen Kort. Linda is
the lead judge of the Wisconsin People
& Ideas / Wisconsin Book Festival 2010
Poetry Contest. Enter by December 15th.
See www.wisconsinacademy.org.
Linda Aschbrenner received a cash
award and honorable mentions for an
essay, two poems, and a young adult
short story in the 78th Annual Writer’s
Digest Writing Competition. One of her
poems is included in the anthology
Empty Shoes, edited by Patrick T.
Randolph, published by Popcorn Press.
She also participated in a publishers’
panel at the Wisconsin Book Festival in
Madison. Linda Aschbrenner and Marsh
River Editions were featured in the
Marshfield area Buyers’ Guide in
November. The article was written by
Kris Rued-Clark.
Northeast
Region
Sarah Rose Thomas, Northeast Regional VP
970 School Place
Green Bay, WI 54303
psychopsychosarah@yahoo.com
Estella Lauter tied for first place in
the 2009 Barbara Mandigo Kelly Peace
Poetry Contest sponsored by the Nuclear
Age Peace Foundation. The poem,
“Gaza, January 2009” can be viewed at
www.wagingpeace.org.
Karen McClelland’s memoir piece,
“Choices,” is appearing in the November
2009 issue of The Infinite Writer, an
e-zine. The poem can be found at
mysite.verizon.net/resockeb/ezine/index.html.
Northwest
Region
Jan
Chronister, Northwest Regional VP
3931 S. County Road O
Maple, WI 54854
janchronister@yahoo.com
WFOP members Jan Chronister,
Naomi Cochran, Gladyce
Nahbenayash and Ann Penton read
poems at the Second Sunday event on
October 11th, featuring the 2010 Wisconsin Poets’ Calendar. Jan received
word that one of her poems won First
Place in a category, two received Awards
of Merit, and one received a Citation in
the 2009 Minnesota League of Poets
annual contest.
submitted by
Jan Chronister, Northwest Regional VP
South Region
Frank
Konieska, South Regional VP
3633 Honey Creek Rd.
Burlington, WI 53105
konieska@tds.net
submitted by
Frank Konieska, South Regional VP
South-Central
Region
James
Roberts, South-Central Regional VP
324 Kedzie Street #30
Madison, WI 53704
jrob52162@aol.com
Greetings, fellow poets. Once again, I
am afraid this will be a foreshortened
column and Rubik’s Cube hodgepodge.
Emerson’s foolish hobgoblins have been
at work on my computer—again! It’s
disconcerting to realize how rapidly these
things change and how quickly one gets
left behind in this all-too-hasty world.
Well, enough of that. I shall continue to
joust in this cybersphere until I am truly
unhorsed.
Suzy Godwin sends news that she’s
had haiku published in both the Spring/
Summer 2009 and the Fall/Winter 2009
editions of Echoes.
Sarah Busse not only has been busy
setting up (with Wendy Vardaman) the
Verse Wisconsin magazine and traveling
about promoting the venture, but she has
also had a chapbook published by Red
Dragonfly Press called Quiver. Sarah
was a guest on WORT’s “Radio
Literature” program on Thursday,
October 15th. She and Wendy were also
featured in the November 2009 issue of
Madison Magazine as one of “33 Madisonians Who’ve Had A Really
Good Year.” (I suspect that I would
have made the list as one of “33
Madisonians Who’ve Had A Really BAD
Year!—Funny how they never print those
lists.)
R. Virgil Ellis has had his latest
collection—described as his magnum
opus—published by Desperado Press.
The Tenting Cantos contains 100 poems
in a full book-length format. Well done,
Ron!
Richard Roe appeared on WORT’s
“Radio Literature” program, reading
poetry on August 13th. That same
evening Catherine Jagoe read poetry at
the Sundance Theatre in Madison.
Robin Chapman read from her
forthcoming collection The Hydra’s Eye at Avol’s Bookstore in Madison on
September 10th. She also joined Susan
Elbe, Catherine Jagoe, Jesse Lee
Kercheval, and Sara Parrell in a “House
Concert” at the Chapmans' residence on
September 25th.
Wendy Vardaman and Katrin
Talbot read and shared poetry at Avol’s
on September 27th.
A couple of items did not make it into the
last issue....
Susan Elbe had poems in the Spring
2009 issue of Valparaiso Poetry Review,
Sawbuck, Crab Creek Review, the Fall
2009 issue of Diode, and she received an
Honorable Mention in Alison Joseph’s
love rondeau contest at Rondeau
Roundup Blog’s July 2009 issue. Susan and Ron Czerwien had a collaborative
poem in the “Mutating The Signature”
issue of Qarrtsiluni and Susan had
another poem in the “Words of Power”
issue as well. She received a residency
to the Virginia Center For Creative Arts
for Fall 2009 and participated in a panel
at the Lorine Niedecker Poetry Festival
in Fort Atkinson in October 2009.
F.J. Bergmann continues to publish
industriously and prolifically with
acceptances and appearances in the
following (deep breath): 55 Words,
Aberrant Dreams, Alimentum, Asimov’s,
Astropoetica, Big Toe Review, Blazevox,
Doorways, Epicenter, Elimae, Fear and
Trembling, Issue 1, Les Bonnes Fees,
Mad Hatter’s Review, The Magazine of
Speculative Poetry, Mythic Delirium,
The Nebula Awards Showcase, New
Myths, Nightblade, Opium, Otoliths,
Pemmican, Poetry Midwest, Qarrtsiluni,
Red Heart/Black Heart, Right Hand
Pointing, The 2009 Rhysling Award
Anthology, Ruthless Peoples Magazine,
Scifaikuest, Six Little Things, Spaceports
& Spidersilk, Strange Horizons,
Subtropics, Tales of the Unanticipated,
Vampyr Verse, Weird Deer, and Weird
Tales. She won the “Picture-Worth-500-
Words” contest in Tattoo Highway #18,
received second prize in the Newport
Review 2009 Flash Fiction Contest, and is
currently one of 10 finalists in the Opium 250-word bookmark contest. She is the
poetry editor for Mobius: The Journal of
Social Change.
Fabu, Madison’s Poet Laureate, read
poetry at the Lorine Niedecker Poetry
Festival in Fort Atkinson on October 3rd.
Other participants were John Lehman,
Sarah Busse, and Wendy Vardaman, and
former winners of the Lorine Niedecker
Poetry Award. Fabu is also the poetry
columnist for Madison Magazine and
continues to work with kids in various
poetry programs around Madison.
James P. Roberts had a poem, “The
Poet Forgets Jazz” published in the
November 2009 issue of Madison
Magazine. He also has contributed a dust
jacket commendation to Bryan Thao
Worra’s new collection of poetry, Barrow (Sam’s Dot Publishing).
Poets too numerous to mention here are
included in the 2010 Wisconsin Poets’ Calendar. If you want to know who they
are ... buy a copy or two! Lots of good stuff
here and plenty of room for writing a poem
of your own!
Until next time....
Submitted by
James P. Roberts, South-Central Regional VP
Kathleen Ernst’s poem “Facing
Forward” was juried into the Mark My
Words Exhibition at the Pump House
Regional Arts Center in La Crosse. Artist
Monica T. Jagel created a visual response
to the poem. Also, Kathleen’s poem
“Thunderbird and Whale” recently
appeared in Perceptions.
Gillian Nevers had two poems appear
in the autumn issue of Pierene's Fountain,
an online magazine. She also had a poem
in the 2010 Wisconsin Poets’ Calendar.
Marilyn Taylor was featured in the
Wisconsin State Journal on Sunday,
November 8th. The article discussed the
Poet Laureateship, Marilyn’s work, and
her Poet Laureate philosophy. The story
also promoted a newly produced video
that the State Journal will be featuring
on its website that focuses on the change
of seasons in Wisconsin, with Marilyn
reading her poems as the voice-over.
On November 8th Alice D’Alessio,
Ronnie Hess, Bobbie Krinsky, Jackie
Langetieg, and Kathy Miner gave a
poetry reading entitled “In Search of
Lost Ancestors: The Poet as
Genealogist.”
Geoff Collins has been fortunate to
have work recently appear in Blue Earth
Review, Willow Review, Mobius,
Peninsula Pulse and one of the final
issues of Main Channel Voices. He also
has several poems forthcoming in both
River Oak Review and Tiger’s Eye
Journal. He is working on a chapbook
for possible publication next year.
Shoshauna Shy has had poems appear
courtesy of The Chiron Review, Ragged
Sky Press and the 2010 Wisconsin Poets'
Calendar. She also produced poems
paired with the artwork of Sarah Spencer
on postcards that are currently being
distributed nationwide as part of the
latest Poetry Jumps Off the Shelf project
titled “Lines in the Sand.” See
www.PoetryJumpsOfftheShelf.com for
details.
Alice D’Alessio won the 2008
chapbook contest by Earth’s Daughters
with her book Days We Are Given, which
ED published last month.
Linda Schumacher has a poem in the
recently released anthology True Cow
Tales: Literary Sketches and Stories by
Farmers, Ranchers, and Dairy Princesses,
published by Dog Ear Publishing. True
Cow Tales is available online through
www.truecowtales.com.
West-Central Region
Sandra
Lindow, West-Central Regional VP
320
W. Tyler Avenue
Eau Claire, WI 54701
lindowleaf@yahoo.com
September 10th, Steve Betchkal,
Sandra Lindow, Don Melcher and
Dina St. Louis participated in a reading
at Bookends on Main bookstore in
Menomonie. Despite unseasonal
inclement weather with blowing snow,
slippery streets, and car accidents, the
Chippewa Valley Book Festival, October
22nd to the 25th, was a success.
Sue Thibado has had three poems
accepted for the anthology Empty Shoes.
Popcorn Press is the publisher. The
profits go to homeless shelters in
Wisconsin. Cost is $18.95 plus shipping.
Bruce Taylor’s two poems, “Middle-Aged Man, Smoking,” and “Little
Elegies” appear in Light Quarterly (Spring Summer 2009). On November
1st, his poem “A Whole Day” was the
featured poem on
www.YourDailyPoem.com!
Sandra Lindow was one of the Just
Local Writers to read at the Chippewa
Valley Book Festival, which also featured
a reading and workshop by Marilyn
Taylor. Lindow’s poem, “A Crisis of
Forest” was part of the Science Fiction
Poetry Association’s online Halloween
Poetry reading. It can be found at
www.sfpoetry.com/halloween.html. Her
poem “The Hedge Witch’s Upgrade’
appeared in the October/November
Asimov’s; her poem, “Finding the God
Particle,” has been accepted by
www.StrangeHorizons.com, and “The
Long Ride” has been accepted by Verse
Wisconsin. Lindow recently participated
in an online 1000-poem renga.
submitted by
Sandra Lindow, West-Central Regional VP
Jane-Marie Bahr, Menomonie, has
published “Autumn Leaves,” in the
September issue of Hummingbird. Her
poem was illustrated on the adjacent
page of the Art Editor, David Kopitzke.
She read her poem, “Selecting a
Memorial,” from her series Seasons of
Grief: The Gerry Poems, at an ecumenical
service at Luther Hospital in Eau Claire
on August 2nd.
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As many of you already know (Q.E.D.), the WFOP’s Museletter is available on our website. You can read it right on the site or you can choose to print a hard copy of the Museletter. To print a copy of the Museletter, go to the top of the Museletter page (this one)and then click on the “printable .pdf of current issue” in the upper right corner. If you would like to discontinue receiving the Museletter by mail and get your newsletter online instead, please notify Chris Falk (contact information near top of page). You will be notified by e-mail when the Museletter is available for viewing on the website (right here!). |
Museletter
Poetry Page
Letters! I got letters! I got lots and lots of terrific “letters-to-famous-people” for this issue of the
Museletter! Thank you all—and the only negative is that because of space limitations, I had to say
no to so many very good ones. I know that you’ll really enjoy the selections below, but please keep
in mind that several poems you do NOT see here were excellent as well. Please keep submitting! |
Refresh my failing memory Paris, dear
Did you not have a clear epiphany
While jailed (for several hours) two years past?
Did you not swear (in jewels by Tiffany)
The mug shot photo-op would be your last?
On Larry King, you said you’d had enough
Of posing and of parties fueled by Scotch,
Of searches for this season’s BFF
And snapshots of your celebrated crotch.
I thought I read that you were born again
Within those claustrophobic prison walls
And planned a philanthropic future when
At last you ditched the convict coveralls.
Well, time’s a-wastin’, Princess of Bel Air;
So hurry, hon, go find your underwear.
—Laurie Risch, Madison
Letter to Norman Perceval Rockwell
When I looked at your work entitled “The Problem We All Live With”
I saw the young black girl Ruby Bridges, flanked by white federal marshals,
walking to school past a wall defaced by racist graffiti.
As I look at her I know she deserves a medal for bravery
She appears fragile and so small
Yet at the same time very strong and powerful
As she carries her books to the school that doesn’t want her
My heart goes out to her and I begin to change
By watching her in your painting my fear settles and becomes small
Her bravery leaps into my heart
Each of your illustrations has affected me
I thank your spirit.
—Gladyce Nahbenayash, Superior
Writing Du Fu
that so few words suffice
when mine run on without purpose.
Have we forgotten wealth and fame
are dew in the morning grass*
Even though your bones grow old
you still fight your wars. Ignoring sparseness,
I walk away from mine.
Your humble servant,
—Jackie Langetieg, Verona
*Du Fu: A Life in Poetry
trans. David Young
To Sigurd F. Olson, Somewhere North of Ely
Dear friend, is it possible after so many years
to ask this favor, not that I have reached perfection,
but you did offer (remember, when you wrote in 1977),
you said my work was beautiful, you said to keep writing,
to keep everything, that it would take work to get there,
but one day it would come, and when that day arrived
just let you know, and perhaps you could help.
I have to confess, I didn’t follow your advice.
I didn’t write every day, and in fact, I didn’t write for years.
I burned the poems I didn’t like. I didn’t even work very hard.
But I kept your letters, and I kept my snowshoes,
and I remember you said that only poets tell the truth.
Your hands were shaking then. I can see it in the ink
of your last letter, after we spoke. Only poets tell the truth
and I have told the truth, I have learned to be here,
have become the pasqueflower, bringing only beauty
to the harsh. So the day has arrived,
I am still in this world, I am not perfect,
but my words would delight you.
—Naomi Cochran, Hayward
Theme
for Spring issue:
Epistolary
See below for more specific submission information.
Deadline:
Friday, February 5, 2010
|
|
Dear Fred,
It’s still the same old song and dance.
We’re in a war of lethal trickery,
insensate, conflicted, caught just staring—
we could use a little light Terpsichore.
You might consider bringing Ginger
though we may favor Judy, Gene or Cyd.
It’s doubtful you’d miss those feathers in your teeth
after every move that spice girl did.
A couple of swells could turn our heads
that top hat and tails will never be dated.
When a shine on your shoes dulls the dollar blues—
do you suspect this is somehow fated?
Let’s face the music, revive it again—
this isn’t just a stroll in Central park.
It’s for sale, it’s on sale, it’s swing time—
we’re all just slow dancing, in the dark.
—Judy Wucherer, Menomonee Falls
COHENSPEAK
Leonard, my love,
I live my life like a sentence. Caught
between holy and the honky-tonk,
wearing down my days
to scatter longings
on tiny weeds
of death
by violin.
—John Bloner, Jr., Kenosha
To Ardi, my newest oldest relative,
I want to say I’m sorry for calling you a caveman
when I saw your picture in the paper Grandma said
you weren’t Not a gorilla either You are a real woman
But when diggers found you in Africa, you were in so
many pieces it took 15 years to put you back together
again, kind of like Humpty Dumpty, who you never knew
Those diggers did a good job, after all you’re more than
four million years old but walked like me so you could
carry things That surprised everyone And since you spend
a lot of time in trees, that one long toe was a good idea
but I’m glad that changed I wish I could ask you how
it feels being called a fossil, a link more important
than Lucy, who you don't know either And what it was
like when you were my age Nobody can tell me that
Or what you thought about and how your figured stuff out
what scared you or made you laugh, and if you ever cried
Maybe someday we’ll know all that Until then, what
Grandma and I talk about now makes me glad they found you
I am ten years old and this letter is from me and my grandma,
Katy Phillips, part of the family you never knew you’d have
—Kathleen Phillips, Waukesha
To Lorine Niedecker
You lived in the shadows,
where hard living circumscribed
too many of your dreams.
Yet, you created poems, sparse
but complete, pieces full of images.
You told whole stories in measured words,
believing you had said enough,
while you waited for the world to hear.
You felt devotion for one man for years,
but lived with only loneliness.
You learned love had many faces, chose one
who gave you his heart and a different peace.
He understood your need for warmth,
your need to write and your poems flourished.
You wrote of the river,
were nurtured in that harbor.
You sought brevity and drafted lines
as fertile as the landscape.
You expanded your sights
with letters and tempered inquiry.
You taught us to condense the “now”—
see emotions in the spaces,
and hone moments sharp with meaning.
—Lou Roach, Poynette
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Poems By Our Membership Pages
Theme & Guidelines for Spring 2010 Issue
1. Submit no more than one poem per member, please.
2. 24 lines or fewer, rhyme and meter optional.
3. Title of poem, name of poet and home town of poet must appear on the submission itself.
4. Email submissions (preferred) are fine, either as MS Word attachments or in the body of the e-mail. Send to: mlt@uwm.edu
6. Snail-mail submissions are also permissible. Send to: Marilyn Taylor, 2825 E. Newport Ave., Milwaukee, WI 53211. (Poems will not be returned.)
THEME: The Body Electric!
Write a poem in celebration of one part (just one!) of your (or anybody’s) body, or a poem that is SPOKEN by one part of your (or anybody’s) body. Use Lucille Clifton’s “homage to my hips” as one example. Dana Levin’s “In the Surgical Theatre” is another; the prose-poem “A Hand” by Jane Hirshfield is still another. All are accessible on the Internet. Membership status must be current to be considered
for publication on these pages.
—Marilyn Taylor |
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See print Museletter or .pdf for Financial Report |
Museletter
Advertising Rates
Books
for Sale in Poetry Publications
section..................... $5.00 per listing
(This price is not discounted to Members. Discount is built into
the one free listing per book, per year)
Business
Card ....... $25.00
Quarter Page ........ $50.00
Half Page.............. $100.00
Prices
are for camera-ready advertisements. Specialty designs or advertisement
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if interested in purchasing advertisements. |
Door County Retreat for Rent
South Nest
Three bedroom, two bath house near Cana Island. A quiet,
restful, woodland retreat located in the boreal forest just off
County Q. Woodburning fireplace, convenient location for
all of northern Door County.
8734 E. Moonlight Bay Drive, Baileys Harbor, WI 54202-0340. (920) 839-2191 or mrsticket@dcwis.com Rates: $50/night/room or $125/whole house/night. |
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"Fellowship" T-Shirts,
Sweatshirts & Mugs Available
Sport your Fellowship membership proudly, and support us as well! The WFOP
logo now graces T-shirts and coffee mugs. The "T" is
a basic-white model, silkscreened front and back in black. L and XL for
$10; XXL costs $11. The mug, at $5, is white ceramic with fired-on black printing. To purchase,
contact membership chair Gillian Nevers at (608) 255-5080 or nevers@wisc.edu. |
2011 Wisconsin Poets’ Calendar
Planning Ahead
Sandy Lindow (Menomonie) and Peg Lauber (Eau Claire) will edit the 2011 Calendar. Submission period will begin November 1, 2009. The editors will be looking for poems with a strong sense of place. More information can be found on the Calendar page and in the Winter Museletter.
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Conference
Rotation Schedule
Spring
2010
April 23-24
Northeast |
Fall
2010
November 5-7
West Central |
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