Poetry On The Porch

I had the honor of attending 'Poetry On The Porch' at the Alice Paul Institute, organized by Erika Kelly, a poet I met three or four years ago through blogging. She began working with me on my writing as an editor. Then we began to appear in local circles together. She is a wonderful writer in her own right and I am glad to be able to support her. Erika organizes this event-

National Poetry Month is a month-long, national celebration of poetry established by the Academy of American Poets. The concept is to widen the attention of individuals and the media—to the art of poetry, to living poets, to our complex poetic heritage, and to poetry books and journals of wide aesthetic range and concern. We hope to increase the visibility and availability of poetry in popular culture while acknowledging and celebrating poetry’s ability to sustain itself in the many places where it is practiced and appreciated.

The Alice Paul Institute is a not-for-profit 501(c)3 corporation based in Mount Laurel, New Jersey. It was founded in 1984 by a group of dedicated volunteers to commemorate the centennial of Alice Paul's 1885 birth and to further her legacy. The organization was operated by volunteers for more than a decade. Today, four staff members, as well as volunteers, oversee the daily business and special events at Paulsdale.

After Annmarie Lockhart, Joanie DiMartino, Paloma Amar, and Erika Kelly read I was given the chance to read. I chose a few new poems but decided to read a poem I had written when I was only 15 years old. A memory that stood out in my head still to this day, and had revised it a few times, but the original just works. Most of our mothers and grandmothers did not use dried seasonings, nor did we own any bottles. They used only fresh ingredients bought from the market, or used what they had on hand. It occurred to me my mom seasoned her food with 'Depression', something she suffered from her whole life, up until she passed away.

(Poems are removed after three days...)