I thought we might as well get into the spirit of Halloween this week, and get all cackly. Smiles. October has scurried by with the swiftness of falling leaves and fading daylight. We hope it has been a good month for you, sparking some wonderful poems. On Friday, did you catch Shane Koyczan's spoken word poem: To the Bullied and Beautiful? I love his work. On Monday, it is - so soon I can scarcely believe it - Mary's and my "See you in the 'sphere!" feature. And we will, never fear! We still love poetry! And all of you. On Wednesday, Sanaa has an intriguing prompt for us at Midweek Motif: A Million Years Howl When Voices Whisper Among the Trees. That stirs my Wild Woman muse. I suspect some wolves may show up in the poem I write in response. Smiles. Next Friday, Rosemary is continuing her series of features under the new name: Wild Fridays. I love that title. Her first Wild Friday features an Australian poet who is only thirteen years old; she was the youngest poet performing at a Spoken Word event alongside Rosemary. You won't want to miss this feature. I am enchanted. I love it when the young speak up, in their clear voices. But now, it is Sunday. Let's settle in with our coffee cups, and read some of your wonderful poems! Thank you for joining us every Sunday. We wouldn't be here without you.
The Broken Group Islands from the Wild Pacific Trail
Wickaninnish in Blue
Chestermans looking towards Catface and Lone Cone
Menina and me
Cox Bay
Tonquin Beach
Chestermans sunset
Happy Sunday, friends. Today I am sharing a few photos to give you an idea of the spectacular beauty in which I am so fortunate to be living. There is so much inspiration here for creative folk, with which the village abounds: writers, painters, photographers, sculptors, carvers, dreamers - all gather here and feast their senses in this dramatic and ever-changing landscape.
Menina is a friend's dog; I walk her on the beach often, since I am so bereft, living as a dogless person, that I have to borrow dogs. Smiles.
Our countdown to the end of October is upon us. It feels surreal that this is my next-to-last Pantry. Be sure to scroll back if you missed Friday's feature: Magaly hosted one of her interactive Moonlight Musings, on the topic of change. Smiles. Plenty of that around!
On Monday, we will get to know Lori Ryan a little better, in my Life of a Poet series. Do stop by and leave her some words of welcome to our community. On Wednesday, the theme of Sumana's Midweek Motif will be Forgiveness. We look forward to reading your poems in response.
And for my final Friday feature, at the end of the week, I am showcasing British Columbia spoken word maestro Shane Koyczan, in what is perhaps his most popular poem: To the Bullied and Beautiful. We hope you enjoy it.
For now, it is Sunday. Coffee, hot, poems, at the ready. You know what to do! Let's dive in!
We are getting so close to 500 Poetry Pantries! That is a lot of poetry appreciation! We are so glad you are here. We couldn't do it without you! Autumn is so gorgeous, with its vibrant flaming colours. We hope your Muse is inspired by all the beauty, flaming brightly before succumbing to winter greys. I love crunching through the leaves, happy as a pumpkin! And I love coming upon the pumpkins themselves, grinning on doorsteps, and other unexpected places, like cliff edges, trees, and driftwood.
We have another good week lining up at Poets United. Did you catch Sanaa's Wild Friday? I love the whole idea of Wild Fridays, needless to say! On Monday, in my Life of a Poet series, we will get to know Ron. Lavalette a little better. Ron writes at Scrambled, Not Fried. And on Wednesday, Susan's Midweek prompt will be The Food We Eat. Cool. The theme for Magaly's next interactive Moonlight Musings (on Friday October 18th) will be "The Positive Side of Change", an exploration of the ways in which change can be a good thing, for writing and for living. That sounds interesting! Today, let's dive into the Pantry ~ top up your coffee, settle in, and let's enjoy some lovely poetry.
NOTES FROM MARY AND SHERRY FROM MARY: "Hi Friends - This is the 495th Poetry Pantry. Believe it or not, Poetry Pantry has been going since 7/27/2010. Every Sunday, except for our very occasional breaks. Amazing, isn’t it? I went back and looked at the first Pantry to see if anyone who posted in that first Pantry is still active here at Poets United. I was there. Sherry Blue Sky was there. Eileen O’Neill and Carrie Burtt were there. The rest of the people who participated in that first Pantry, including the founder of Poets United - Robert Lloyd - are seemingly no longer active in the blogosphere. Anyway, it was fun to look back.
So you see I have been around at Poets United from the beginning — first as a participant, then as a contributor, and (after Robert Lloyd left) as an administrator as well as contributor! I have contributed at other poetry venues as well, including Toads and D’Verse. I was the administrator at the now defunct Poetry Jam (I loved that small site) for a time as well, with its once-a-week prompt!
Being part of the poetry blogosphere has been a big part of my life for many years now. I wrote poetry before, but with my discovery of the blogosphere my interest grew, as did the number of poems that I wrote! It was a wonderful journey. I lived and breathed poetry. And wrote and wrote.
Fast forward ahead to 2019. Friends, for everything there is a season. For every beginning is an eventual ending. I find that it is no longer easy for me to write GOOD poetry, and my interest in poetry has lessened in recent years, so I have decided to step down as a Poets United administrator / contributor at the end of October. But, don’t worry, friends! Poets United will continue on and evolve under the direction of a great staff who will make sure of that. And, ha, I may even be around here when the spirit moves me.
Thanks to all of you who have participated in Poets United over the years and made it such a successful site. A special thanks to Sherry who has accompanied me on this journey from the beginning and who has, throughout all the years, done so much (in every area) for the site and who was always willing to help out anywhere when needed. She has always been a real 'trooper' who worked tirelessly for our site. And thanks to the other dedicated staff we have who will continue to carry on. I have had a wonderful time!"
"Kids, when I found Poets United in 2010, my poetry took wing. I owe a debt of gratitude to this site and to each one of you who has touched my poetic journey. Since 2010, Poets United has been the biggest part of my life and my identity. I have taken great pride and satisfaction in my role, supporting poets and the love of poetry.
Since 2016, the political climate and the climate change crisis have weighed on me so heavily that my normally lively spirit has been dampened. My writing, (always my gauge of how I am doing), has bogged down.
This past year, I have been dealing with extreme fatigue, and vertigo which lasted most of the year. A couple of times, Mary and I talked about whether it was time to stop, but each time we opted to keep going for all of you. Now, however, we have enough staff that Mary and I can step away and the site can keep on going. That is a wonderful thing, for all of us who love it so much.
Mary and I stepped into running Poets United together, and it feels right to me that we should be hopping on our brooms together at Halloween and flying away...But don't worry. I won't fly too far. I will still be writing and linking and visiting all of you. I am hoping that by easing my workload, perhaps my poetry might gain some life again. We live in hope.
As we continue on this journey together, please know that I will never be farther than a link, or an email, away. You all know me better than my "real life" people because you have read the deepest parts of my heart.
I want to thank you, Mary, for these years that have been so wonderful. What an incredibly joyous work experience it has been. Thank you to the dedicated staff who will carry Poets United into the new year. And thank you to each one of you who, since 2010, have shared the love of poetry with us. It has been such a wonderful journey." ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- If you haven't read Sherry's feature of a poem by Aboriginal Canadian poet Jeanette Armstrong this past Friday, do be sure to scroll back. Monday Sherry will be having a wonderful chat with one of our loyal and prolific poets.This next Wednesday's Midweek Motif will be Truth/In Honor of Gandhi's Memory. The theme for next Sunday's Pantry of Prose is "October is Here..." (we'll create pieces set in the month of October). And now, as we always do on Sundays, let us share poetry. Link your poem below, and be sure to visit others who link. Have a wonderful day!
I hope you enjoy this image. This is the most beautiful planet! I love all of its wild and amazing creatures so much.
Did you catch Magaly's Moonlight Musings: the Interactive Edition, on Friday? Friday is getting to be an exciting day of the week at Poets United. Like Forrest Gump's box of chocolates: you never know what you're going to get. Smiles.
On Monday, two poets who have been with Poets United right from the beginning, Susie Clevenger and Marian Kent, are weighing in, as Shay and Kelli did last Monday, on poetry and blogging. You won't want to miss it. On Wednesday, Sumana's prompt at Midweek Motif will be Honey / Bee. That should make for some sweet poems. Smiles.
But today it is Sunday, and you know what to do. Top up your coffee, and let's settle in for sharing our words, thoughts and hearts, all for the love of poetry. Thanks for being here!
We hope this brings you a smile this morning. If only they would sing! LOL. We have another great week coming up at Poets United, my friends. We hope you caught our Friday feature, when Sanaa brought us her interactive Wild Friday! (I love the idea of wild Fridays, needless to say!) On Monday, Fireblossom and Mama Zen are weighing in, sharing a poem each and a few thoughts on poetry and blogging. You won't want to miss it. And Susan's prompt at Midweek Motif on Wednesday will be Vigilance, a quality we need in these difficult times, so our countries don't become unrecognizable. Next Friday Magaly will bring us one of her interactive features. It sounds like an interesting and fun week. We hope you'll join us. As today is Sunday, top up your coffee and settle in for some wonderful poetry. Thank you all for being here. We appreciate you, for you are the reason we're here too, doing what we do.
LOL. Don't let those little things get you down, my friends. All will be well. I see we are creeping up towards 500 Poetry Pantries. Wow. Yay, us!
Did you catch Rosemary's feature on Friday? Two marvellous poems by Dr. Nola Firth about the poet's (and Rosemary's) home town of Murwillumbah, in Australia. Wonderful poems! Keep checking P.U. on Fridays. That day now offers a wide variety of features, each hosted by a different staff member.
On Monday, we will meet and greet one of our newer members, H. Hennenberg, who likes to be called "H." H. lives in the Lower Mainland, in British Columbia, and is actually coming to Tofino with her wife for a visit this week, so we plan to meet up. Yay!
On Wednesday, Sumana's Midweek Motif will be Looking at Stars. Already, my mind is responding, seeking points of inspiration.
But today is Sunday, and you know what to do. Let's read some poetry! Thanks for being here. You are our inspiration, and our reason for being here.
Happy Sunday, poet friends. We hope you had a good week. We certainly did at Poets United, with another great one coming up. On Friday, I featured the Canadian poet Marilyn Dumont, and her poem about her love of the land. It is worth scrolling back if you missed it. Tomorrow, we will enjoy poems by Michael (grapeling), Eric Erb and Scott Hastie. It is always lovely to hear from the menfolk. We are sure you'll enjoy the poems they share. On Wednesday, Sumana's Midweek Motif prompt will be Glory. That gives us a lot of scope. We hope you'll join us. And Rosemary will finish our week off with one of her interesting features. Next Sunday, Magaly has an intriguing theme for her next Pantry of Prose : "Gothic Fiction". That sounds like a LOT of fun! Magaly provided us with a sneak peek: the following link, so participants can think or write ahead, if you wish: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gothic_fiction The weeks do fly by. It is amazing to think summer is coming to an end. Today, let's read some poetry, and then get out into the sunshine. Thank you all for being here. We couldn't do this without you!
This Mongolian girl, laughing with her camel, is about as happy as happy gets! The camel seems to share her sense of humour. I would love to know what caused such laughter. We could use some of it to offset the evening news. Smiles. That, or an anti-depressant. Sigh. On Friday, Magaly provided our Friday feature, our first interactive edition of Moonlight Musings, exploring the topic of negative criticism. Wow! It was so interesting! Do check it out if you missed it. It will not disappoint! On Monday, stop by and enjoy poems by the menfolk. Buddah, Hank and Lee San are writing about the women they love, and their poems will touch your heart. On Wednesday, Susan's midweek prompt will be: Museum(s). That is an intriguing prompt. I look forward to reading the responses. It sounds like another good week coming up. We hope you enjoy it. For now, top up your coffee, and let's enjoy some poetry!
Summer is buzzing by as quickly as these busy bees.........I hope you are enjoying its pleasures. It is hard to believe we are this far into August already. Things are hopping at Poets United, too. You may notice that Sanaa and Magaly will now be joining Rosemary and I taking turns to bring you our Friday features. We think this will make Friday a very interesting day of the week at Poets United and hope you enjoy the variety. This past Friday, Sanaa featured Rudyard Kipling. Do scroll back and see what she put together, if you happened to miss it. Next Friday looks like it will be a lively feature. Magaly will make every third Friday of the month an interactive Moonlight Musings. Well, that definitely intrigues me. Do stop by for that. I think Fridays are going to get really interesting! On Monday, we will feature beautiful poems by Kim Russell, Linda Lyberg and Colleen Redman. And on Wednesday, Sumana's prompt at Midweek Motif will be: Televised. Cool. Meanwhile, today is Sunday, and you know the drill. Link your poem, leave us a few words, and do visit your fellow poets. We are so glad you show up here so faithfully to stock the Pantry with your poems. I think it is my favourite day of the week online.
We had another fine week at Poets United, with another one shaping up ahead. On Friday, I featured a Vancouver Island poet, Margo Button, whose story is close to my heart. The feature included two riveting poems from her book The Unhinging of Wings. This poet and I have something rather devastating in common. Margo Button's son was diagnosed with schizophrenia in his early twenties, mine at seventeen. Sadly, Margo's son did not survive his illness. I know these poems will touch your heart as they did mine. It is worth scrolling back; they are not to be missed. On Monday, we are chatting with Vivian Zems, a very busy poet who brought out not one but two new books in April, one of which was poems written in April. I am wildly impressed and had to ask her how she did it! I'm sure you'll enjoy catching up with her. On Wednesday Magaly is guest hosting Midweek Motif with the intriguing prompt: "not-so-old-fashioned hobbies." I suspect we will read about some interesting and unexpected hobbies on Wednesday. And next Sunday, Monday and Tuesday will be Magaly's Pantry of Prose, on the theme of "Stitches". That sounds like fun. As it is Sunday, let's top up our coffees and see what goodies we have in the Pantry. Thanks for being here. We couldn't do this without you!
Tofino has sunsets spectacular enough to strike you spellbound. The three photos above were taken by my friend, Nancy Powis, who lives on the inlet in Tofino. The village is on a peninsula - on one side, the wild west coast, on the inlet side, the more placid waters and mudflats. Nancy graciously allowed me to post these beautiful shots. Our writing group has held two writing retreats at Nancy's beautiful home, where the tranquil view out the window inspires our writing. Thank you, Nancy, for these beautiful sunsets - such stunning vistas!
We hope you caught Friday's Moonlight Musings, a discussion on the importance of "Flow" in poetry, written by Rosemary's guest presenter, Australian poet Sarah Temporal. It was an interesting article.
On Monday, we will enjoy poems of peace, written by Susan Chast, Sumana Roy and Gillena Cox. We hope you enjoy these meditations on peace: what it is and what it isn't. On Wednesday, Sumana's prompt at Midweek Motif will be: Dance. That might get our toes - and pens - to tapping!
As it is Sunday, you know the drill: keep the coffee hot, and coming. Let's dive into the Pantry and enjoy all that is shared. Leave us a few words to tell us how you are and don't forget to visit your fellow poets. We all love comments. Smiles.
Ms Turtle looks so peaceful and beautiful, swimming along. May she always find clean, safe waters to swim in. Last week seemed to go by extra quickly, not like a tortoise, more like a hare on roller skates! On Friday, in the Living Dead series, Sanaa offered a fascinating account of the life and work of Mirza Ghalib, the Urdu poet who lived in the 1700's. It was most interesting. I love the work of the mystical poets from those early times. He excelled in the ghazal, a form that intrigues me. It is worth scrolling back, if you missed it. On Monday, our featured guests will be Rosemary Nissen-Wade, Carrie Van Horn and Marian Kent, with poems that will knock your socks off. And on Wednesday, Sanaa will be guest hosting at Midweek Motif with the prompt: Perfume. Cool. Let's top up our coffee, maybe add a little extra cream, since it is Sunday, after all, and we can take our morning slow; let's dive in to the Pantry and see what wonders everyone has contributed to the feast. Please remember to visit your fellow poets in the spirit of reciprocity.
The garden has expanded over the years, and now covers several floating barges.
Wayne says the place requires constant
maintenance. Their son helps him with that.
The garden is so lush
They even have an apple tree!
Wayne has a Man Cave
This is the art studio
The art is stunning
One year 40 eagles came to feed on the herring.
They dropped their feathers, which the artists
collected to make this gorgeous mask
There is even a floating "beach."
The Browning Passage vessel
is in the background.
Farewell till next time!
Many visitors from all over the world come to visit Wayne and Catherine every year. Wayne told us their message to all who stop by is:
LIVE YOUR DREAM!
He said their way of life was a dream they made come true, and that others can do it, too, whatever your dreams may be. A wonderful message, which I have lived myself, a time or two.
We hope you enjoyed this little journey, which shows us there are many possibilities for living our lives. I love theirs!
On Friday, we featured a Vancouver Island poet, Eve Joseph, who recently won the $65,000 Griffin prize for a first edition book of poetry. Wow! On Monday, our featured poet is Susie Clevenger. You won't want to miss what she is sharing with us!
On Wednesday, our guest host will be Sanaa, and the prompt will be: Poems to Weather Uncertain Times. That sounds intriguing! Susan will be away during July, and will be back with us in August. Thank you for all you do, Susan.
Next weekend, Magaly's prompt for her Pantry of Prose will be Away from Home. It looks like an inspiring week for writing! A big thank you to our wonderful team, for all you do!
I hope that, wherever on the planet you are, you are enjoying flowers, whether wild or tame, in all their beauty. I especially love wildflowers. I am constantly amazed at how much beauty there is everywhere, for our enjoyment. On Friday, Rosemary featured the thought-provoking work of Joy Harjo, recently named the first indigenous Poet Laureate of the U.S.A. I have always loved her strong voice. This was wonderful news! On Monday, we have some exciting news to share. Rajani's poetry book is out, and we want to hear all about it. Do stop by and leave her a few words of congratulations. On Wednesday, Sumana's theme at Midweek Motif will be : Walk. Cool. Looks like another great week at Poets United. For now, let's top up our coffee, and dive into the Pantry. Link your poem, leave us a few words, and visit your fellow poets in the spirit of community. I so love Sunday mornings!
Happy Sunday, poets! Sending a sweet smile your way, courtesy of this adorable alpaca. We hope your week was everything you needed and wanted it to be. On Friday our newest staff member, Sanaa Rizvi, featured a Moonlight Musings column which was very interesting. Do scroll back if you haven't seen it. On Monday, we are sharing poems by Myrna, Vivian and Grace, which we are sure you will enjoy. And on Wednesday Susan's Midweek Motif will be Gardens. It looks like a good week! For now, let's read some poetry! Link your one poem, leave us a few words in comments, and do visit the offerings of other poets, in the spirit of community. I am looking forward to reading what you have to share. Thanks for being here. The Pantry wouldn't be the same without you.
