Poets writing about place and identity

By Barry Vitcov

The Poetry Corner is a space for new and established poets to have their work published and their creative voices heard. The Poetry Corner exists because of your support. You are invited to submit poems that help us to better know and feel connected to our special Ashland and Southern Oregon community.

Both of today’s poems speak to the importance of community and identity. Louise M. Paré’s poem tells how the connection to her ancestral homeland of Ukraine continues to shape her persona. Seth Kaplan’s recent move from the Applegate to Talent describes how he has easily become attached to his new place and discovered the “us” in his community.

Where I’m From

By Louise M. Paré (she/her)

I am from Ukrainian pysanky
From Miracle Whip and Heinz Tomato Ketchup
I am from backyard irrigation ditches
flowing cool clear with water bugs glistening in the sunlight
I am from gladiolas and white catalpa tree blossoms
singing through my fingers as I twirl in the muddy front yard
I am from hot cross buns and always reading
From Pauline and Ana
I am from the only Parés on the whole west coast and the gypsy traveler
From “little- miss-know- it-all” and “don’t you talk back to me– I’m your mother”
I am from Christmas Midnight Mass, Holy Communion
and bless me father for I have sinned
I am from New Hope Road and the Applegate River
moonlight farmers, lumber mills and
canning a hundred quarts of anything in the good old summertime.
From homemade yogurt and whole grain bread
From my eighteen month old brother Damian
drowning in the irrigation ditch when I was nine years old
and getting my first violin on the day of his funeral
From the arranged marriages of my Ukrainian and French Canadian grandmothers
who didn’t love their husbands but did their duty by them
Above my living room fireplace
hang large elegantly framed photographs of my mother’s family
draped in an embroidered Ukrainian rhushnky from Kyiv
On a long wood shelf at the top of the basement stairs
framed pictures of my French Canadian father’s family
our farms, fields and gardens anchor me
I am from dark earth and mountain rivers
which birthed me
which shaped me
which unfold me still

Louise M. Paré, Ph.D. Women’s Spirituality, CIIS; M.A. Religious Studies Mundelein College, Chicago: international women’s spirituality educator and published writer. Over 40 years teaching experience in women’s spirituality, social justice and the arts. Her matriarchal heritage is Ukrainian. Born and raised on a six-acre self-sustaining farm 10 miles outside of Grants Pass, Oregon, Louise’s interests in the arts, ritual and social justice was nurtured in her family. In 1997, she taught workshops at the Cherkasy Women’s Center and did research in Kyiv, Cherkasy and surrounding villages. Published writer
and poet in women’s spirituality anthologies. Creator of the original “poem fan.”

All That Remains

By Seth Kaplan

I had to choose to live here
to understand the exhilaration
of these spring mornings.
What it means to be reborn.
How to appreciate daffodils
clawing their way to the surface,
their ferocity hidden by sunny adornment,
perky even, as if the very earth of this place
lifts a middle finger and a broad smile
to the tragedy that so recently swept through.
Ragged poplars, like Talentinians, hardy survivors
of what flamed through. Big hearted enough
to house the sparrow’s song of hope.
Even the cottonwood, too ponderous to escape,
have found new life charred into monuments
to a Labor Day that continues to work
the collective consciousness. It is spring
and maybe resiliency rises a little easier
in this little town where the big thing happened.
But it doesn’t matter the reason.
In Talent we know all that remains
is what makes us stronger together.

Seth Kaplan recently moved from the Applegate to Talent, Oregon with his wife Lily, dog Shayna, and cat Sweet Pea. He is a grateful member of the Applegate Poets and Talent’s Open Mike Without A Mike (OMWAM). His most recent published poetry has appeared in Tokyo Poetry Journal, Cobra Lily, and Jefferson Journal.

Poetry submissions welcomed!

You are invited to submit original work to the Poetry Corner. There are only two restrictions: First, poems need to show a connection to Ashland and/or Southern Oregon. Your interpretation of that connection is fairly loose! Second, poems need to be aligned to the left margin. The publishing platform used by the Ashland.news has issues with the creative use of space! There are no length restrictions but try to keep your poems to no more than 30 lines. Be sure to include the title of your poem, your name as you would like it to appear, the city or town in which you reside, and, if you wish, your preferred pronouns.

To submit poems, send to Barry Vitcov at [email protected]

Dec. 16: Corrected submission email address.