Winners of the
First New York State “Poetry Unites—My Favorite Poem” Contest Announced
Posted on
June 02 2014
New
York, NY (May 2, 2014) Marie Howe, State Poet of the State of New York and
Corinne Evens, a philanthropist, in coordination with the Academy of American
Poets, the New York State Writers Institute, and the New York State Office of
Cultural Education, are pleased to announce the winners of the 2014 Poetry
Unites contest for the best short essay about a favorite poem. The
winners of the contest, which was open to all New York State residents, are in
alphabetical order:
·
Marita Boulos, literacy program coordinator from Rouse Points, Clinton
County, NY, for her straightforward and eloquent prose that candidly brings
John Donne’s “Song” into her village.
·
Rosanna Oh, from Jericho, Long Island, a student, for her deeply
personal response to the humility and precision in Robert Hayden’s “Those
Winter Sundays.”
·
Matthew Powers, a teacher from Little Falls, NY, for the way he
realistically invokes the incantatory and communal nature of poetry in Mark
Strand’s “Lines for Winter.”
·
Paul White a healthcare provider from Cheektowaga, NY, for
recognizing the talismanic power and healing capacity of poetry in David
Ignatow’s “Sunday at the State Hospital.”
The
winners will each be featured in short film profiles directed by Ewa
Zadrzynska, which will be posted on Poets.org as well as the State Library, and
NYS Writers Institute’s websites, and may be broadcast by public television
across the United States. They will be awarded a Certificate of Merit and
invited to a celebratory film screening on October 18, 2014 in NYC.
The jury selection members included:
·
Marie Howe, State Poet of the State of New York,
2012-2014
·
Jeffrey Cannel, Deputy Commissioner, New York State
Office of Cultural Education
·
Nina Darnton, Author
·
Donald Faulkner, Director, New York State Writers
Institute
·
Edward Hirsch, Poet and Chancellor of the Academy of
American Poets
·
Robert Pinsky, Poet, former US Poet Laureate and the
Founder of Favorite Poem Project
·
Ewa Zadrzynska, Writer and Filmmaker
The
Jury also awarded Certificates of Merit to six additional participants:
·
Helen Ruggieri, poet, from Olean, NY, for her essay on
James Wright’s poem: “A Blessing”
·
Louis Altman, a lawyer from Albany, NY, for his essay on
Wallace Steven’s poem “The Sense of Order”
·
Philip McCallion, Ph.D. from Albany, NY, for his essay on
Seamus Heaney’s poem “Digging”
·
Sharon de Silva from Schenectady, NY, for her essay on
Langston Hughes’ poem “Mother to Son”
·
Martin Mahler retiree from Brooklyn, NY, for his essay on
Edna St. Vincent Millay’s poem: “Lament”
·
Ben Kroup, editor, writer, from from Waterford NY, for
his essay on Kristtijonas Donelaitis’ poem “Metai”
Each
of their essays will be published on the Academy of American Poets website,
Poets.org.
The
New York State Poetry Unites contest is based on a model that has been held
successfully in Europe. Developed and produced by Ewa Zadrzynska for the Evens
Foundation, the first “Poetry Unites – My Favorite Poem” contest was held in
Poland in 2008, where it has since become an annual event. In 2012 the Evens
Foundation extended the contest to other European countries. So far the
contest has been held twice in Germany, five times in Poland, and once in
Bulgaria.
This is my entry which will be posted on www.poets.org
JAMES
WRIGHT’S A BLESSING
I attended a school so conservative that Alan
Ginsberg was forbidden to step onto the campus.
When students invited him to read, his appearance was cancelled by the
administration so it is not surprising that mindset permeated the faculty and
class content. Ina contemporary poetry class we were to pick a poet and lead a discussion
concerning a poem you particularly liked.
I selected James Wright’s work
and his poem “A Blessing.” I loved the way it started from a specific
place ‘just off the highway to
Rochester, Minnesota.’ It began so
exactly with the description of the scene it was as if you were there in the
soft dusk, watching the horses munching
the tufts of spring in the darkness, the communion of species. I was probably gushing when I talked about
the poem because I loved it so at a time when poetry had been turned from a joy
to a puzzle to be unraveled.
The professor pointed out that the last line of the
poem was not an earned conclusion. It
had seemingly (or suddenly) appeared as a way to end the poem. Bowing to authority and needing to earn my
degree, I appeared to agree but always held the ending as a gift that sometimes
comes from nowhere, felt knowledge that raises your spirit, elevates your life.
Years went by. I was attending a wedding reception held in
the country. I got
up from the picnic table where we were seated and walked over to an
electric fence that encircled
a near by pasture. As I walked
along the fence, a pig came over to watch me.
Probably as bored as I
was. How
ya doin,’ I asked. I told him about the
wedding and why I was there and didn’t know
anybody and that pretty soon I
could leave. The pig listened
attentively. What a great audience.
Was a pig an appropriate subject for a
poem? Would you like me to write a poem
about you, I
asked?
He
fairly tapdanced on his trotters. I’d
never been this close to a living pig before.
He had long eyelashes and white skin with a tinge of pink. He would
probably need sunscreen. A few curly hairs sprung from his back. I talked to him for a bit and decided I
should go back to the table and get a treat for him.
When I came back bearing
carrots, I swear, the pig smiled at me.
This pig likes me, I thought. And
I liked him. He shuffled his trotters
and looked up at me and smiled again.
This pig knew about being alone.
He was grateful for my company.
In a sudden moment of clarity, I knew some things too. I knew that Wright had earned every bit of
his conclusion by observing, by being in the moment and I knew that at any
moment I might break into blossom.
On the Monday morning
following the wedding, I was riding along when even with the windows closed a
terrible smell oozed into the car - ahead, a big rig pulling a load of pigs in
a slatted trailer. Their snouts were
pushed through the slats and I thought I could feel their terror.
I had to look away. I knew where
they were headed. That’s my pig tale.
Not as romantic as horses, but you take what comes whether you’ve earned
it or not.
Winners of the
First New York State “Poetry Unites—My Favorite Poem” Contest Announced
Posted on
May
02 2014
New
York, NY (May 2, 2014) Marie Howe, State Poet of the State of New York and
Corinne Evens, a philanthropist, in coordination with the Academy of American
Poets, the New York State Writers Institute, and the New York State Office of
Cultural Education, are pleased to announce the winners of the 2014 Poetry
Unites contest for the best short essay about a favorite poem. The
winners of the contest, which was open to all New York State residents, are in
alphabetical order:
·
Marita Boulos, literacy program coordinator from Rouse Points, Clinton
County, NY, for her straightforward and eloquent prose that candidly brings
John Donne’s “Song” into her village.
·
Rosanna Oh, from Jericho, Long Island, a student, for her deeply
personal response to the humility and precision in Robert Hayden’s “Those
Winter Sundays.”
·
Matthew Powers, a teacher from Little Falls, NY, for the way he
realistically invokes the incantatory and communal nature of poetry in Mark
Strand’s “Lines for Winter.”
·
Paul White a healthcare provider from Cheektowaga, NY, for
recognizing the talismanic power and healing capacity of poetry in David
Ignatow’s “Sunday at the State Hospital.”
The
winners will each be featured in short film profiles directed by Ewa
Zadrzynska, which will be posted on Poets.org as well as the State Library, and
NYS Writers Institute’s websites, and may be broadcast by public television
across the United States. They will be awarded a Certificate of Merit and
invited to a celebratory film screening on October 18, 2014 in NYC.
The jury selection members included:
·
Marie Howe, State Poet of the State of New York,
2012-2014
·
Jeffrey Cannel, Deputy Commissioner, New York State
Office of Cultural Education
·
Nina Darnton, Author
·
Donald Faulkner, Director, New York State Writers
Institute
·
Edward Hirsch, Poet and Chancellor of the Academy of
American Poets
·
Robert Pinsky, Poet, former US Poet Laureate and the
Founder of Favorite Poem Project
·
Ewa Zadrzynska, Writer and Filmmaker
The
Jury also awarded Certificates of Merit to six additional participants:
·
Helen Ruggieri, poet, from Olean, NY, for her essay on
James Wright’s poem: “A Blessing”
·
Louis Altman, a lawyer from Albany, NY, for his essay on
Wallace Steven’s poem “The Sense of Order”
·
Philip McCallion, Ph.D. from Albany, NY, for his essay on
Seamus Heaney’s poem “Digging”
·
Sharon de Silva from Schenectady, NY, for her essay on
Langston Hughes’ poem “Mother to Son”
·
Martin Mahler retiree from Brooklyn, NY, for his essay on
Edna St. Vincent Millay’s poem: “Lament”
·
Ben Kroup, editor, writer, from from Waterford NY, for
his essay on Kristtijonas Donelaitis’ poem “Metai”
Each
of their essays will be published on the Academy of American Poets website,
Poets.org.
The
New York State Poetry Unites contest is based on a model that has been held
successfully in Europe. Developed and produced by Ewa Zadrzynska for the Evens
Foundation, the first “Poetry Unites – My Favorite Poem” contest was held in
Poland in 2008, where it has since become an annual event. In 2012 the Evens
Foundation extended the contest to other European countries. So far the
contest has been held twice in Germany, five times in Poland, and once in
Bulgaria.
This is my entry which will be posted on www.poets.org
JAMES
WRIGHT’S A BLESSING
I attended a school so conservative that Alan
Ginsberg was forbidden to step onto the campus.
When students invited him to read, his appearance was cancelled by the
administration so it is not surprising that mindset permeated the faculty and
class content. In
a contemporary poetry class we were to pick a poet and lead a discussion
concerning a poem you particularly liked.
I selected James Wright’s work
and his poem “A Blessing.” I loved the way it started from a specific
place ‘just off the highway to
Rochester, Minnesota.’ It began so
exactly with the description of the scene it was as if you were there in the
soft dusk, watching the horses munching
the tufts of spring in the darkness, the communion of species. I was probably gushing when I talked about
the poem because I loved it so at a time when poetry had been turned from a joy
to a puzzle to be unraveled.
The professor pointed out that the last line of the
poem was not an earned conclusion. It
had seemingly (or suddenly) appeared as a way to end the poem. Bowing to authority and needing to earn my
degree, I appeared to agree but always held the ending as a gift that sometimes
comes from nowhere, felt knowledge that raises your spirit, elevates your life.
Years went by. I was attending a wedding reception held in
the country. I got
up from the picnic table where we were seated and walked over to an
electric fence that encircled
a near by pasture. As I walked
along the fence, a pig came over to watch me.
Probably as bored as I was. How
ya doin,’ I asked. I told him about the
wedding and why I was there and didn’t know anybody and that pretty soon I
could leave. The pig listened
attentively. What a great audience. Was a pig an appropriate subject for a
poem? Would you like me to write a poem
about you, I asked?
He
fairly tapdanced on his trotters. I’d
never been this close to a living pig before.
He had long eyelashes and white skin with a tinge of pink. He would
probably need sunscreen. A few curly hairs sprung from his back. I talked to him for a bit and decided I
should go back to the table and get a treat for him.
When I came back bearing
carrots, I swear, the pig smiled at me.
This pig likes me, I thought. And
I liked him. He shuffled his trotters
and looked up at me and smiled again.
This pig knew about being alone.
He was grateful for my company.
In a sudden moment of clarity, I knew some things too. I knew that Wright had earned every bit of
his conclusion by observing, by being in the moment and I knew that at any
moment I might break into blossom.
On the Monday morning
following the wedding, I was riding along when even with the windows closed a
terrible smell oozed into the car - ahead, a big rig pulling a load of pigs in
a slatted trailer. Their snouts were
pushed through the slats and I thought I could feel their terror.
I had to look away. I knew where
they were headed. That’s my pig tale.
Not as romantic as horses, but you take what comes whether you’ve earned
it or not.
BREAKTHROUGH MANUSCRIPT
B
BREAKTHOUGSHT
