Hi,
Lin,
The PoPo project that you and Ms. Bloomer
collaborated on is excellent. I was really impressed by the five sample
poems. They gave me a sense of what throwing a pot must be like.
Here are some of the lines that I think encapsulate the feelings of the entire
poems: "the piece of art is working with me. It realizes it's
going to be made."--Amber; "The blob of clay, grey, ugly and
round"--Nikki; "I saw my gray clay change as I pounded it with such
force."--Ashley; "It comes from my mind and not through my
hands."--Mike; "I look at my sad little pot slightly resembling a
seashell. Maybe I did accomplish a mini-masterpiece for all to
see."--Alisha. These poems are very polished!
One of the things about the five poems is
that they show such different responses to making pottery and then to putting
pottery to poetry (that's almost a tongue-twister). And all of the poems
have such tactile imagery, maybe more than most other poetry topics.
I was at a school in Hartford, Connecticut,
and one of the teachers brought me two wet clay tablets and asked me to carve a
poem into them. She said one was for her and one was for me. That
was almost 25 years ago. I put it away when I got back to Iowa City and
forgot about it. Then, about 5 years ago when my son and I moved to our
current house, I ran across the tablet and put it on the bathroom sink, where it
has remained ever since. The poem that I carved in it was called TABLET
NUMBER 1, and it goes like this:
WHEN THE
MOUTH
SEES ITS
VOICE,
THE EYE
WRITES
ALOUD.
And I just discovered something about the
tablet that you won't believe, but I swear on all the poetry that's ever been
written that what I'm going to tell you is true: At the bottom of the
tablet I carved the date--4-27-78. Today's date is 4-27-04. The
tablet is exactly 26 years old, one year for each letter of the alphabet!
(Reprise from the Twilight Zone.) I don't remember ever even noticing the
date before.
The object poems shown in the gallery are
also terrific. The silver and black car [or is it called something else?]
is very nice, with the two handprints and poems at the headlights. I like
how you put so many photos of it at the beginning of the gallery. As I
mentioned to you, I have a car spray-painted in many colors--but it is on its
last legs. I bought a new (well, old, but new for me) car to replace it.
I hate to give it up, but I think it's going to fall apart in a fiery explosion
if I don't.
The American flag as poetry--alright!
(My Poem, Love It or Leave It). The flag and all the other objects around
it remind me of some of the art installations at the museums in NY.
I love that blue mannequin (or is it
purple--I'll have to play the colorblind card on this one). The words on
it look very fashionable. Some of the words are hard to read, but their
presence is appreciated. This is a great object poem.
All of these are wonderful. The lava
lamps (my son doesn't think that's what they are), the picture frame, the red
wagon, the skates, the fishbowl, the sink, that 33 1/3 rpm record, and the other
creations!
The skateboard struck a special chord,
since my son Danny is getting to be quite an expert at it--he's in high
intermediate for contests. The Daily Iowan Newspaper is doing an article
on him in the next few days.
The wheel (or hubcap?) looks so beautiful
with the words on it! There are so many excellent object poems in the new
gallery. I wish I could see them in person. That would be the best
way to view them. I am truly captivated by your classes' creativity!
Keep up the utterly awesome, awe-inspiring work!
Yours,
Dave
Dear Lin,
I happened to run across your review of The Adventures of Dr Alphabet
on Amazon, and I wanted to thank you so very much for your extremely kind
words! I did a google search and found your school's website, and I was totally
blown away by the fantastic things your students have done!!! The exhibits at
the Poetry Gallery might be the most colorful, diversified, and imaginative
presentations of poems that have ever been in the whole history of the universe!
I showed my son, who is a freshman in high school, and he was amazed, too.
The car with the poem on it was most impressive, especially since my car has
been spray painted by Danny and his friends a few times in the past year.
There are so many things to look at in the gallery. The peace symbol made out of
newspapers with headlines and stories of the Gulf War. The lamps, the tire,
the bowling pin, the toilet, the mailbox, the fan, the globe--wow! So much
imagination, so many creative minds in action! You really took the idea to a new
dimension. Letting the kids choose their own ways to do things and then to
exhibit what they did is wonderful, and the results show it. But these things
don't happen without teachers behind them, and you and Mark Boyd must be
great, inspired, and inspiring teachers. The students look like they are having
lots of fun displaying their art object poems. You said it was like Christmas
when they brought them in. Imagine how I felt coming across all of these
things in your website--like a kid in a candy shop. I can't help but smile when I
look at these works. I've emailed two friends already, telling them to check
out your website, and I'll be emailing others, including Teachers & Writers,
America Scores, and Marvin Bell, who used to head the Iowa Writers Workshop. I
think they will be very, very interested in seeing what you have brought
about in your high school. I loved your magazine examples, too, from Zyzzyva
(great title for the mag), and the all-school group poem is truly an effective way
of expressing the hopes, fears, and angers that war generates in most people
who think beyond the shallow political slogans promoting it.
You and Mark have done something unique. If I ever am in your
vicinity, I'd like to see the Poetry Gallery. I feel really honored--thrilled--that
my book had some part in making such a terrific thing happen with so many high
school students. Keep up the fantastic work!
Yours,
Dave Morice
Box 3382
Iowa City, IA 52244
(319) 354-1605