Journal (May 2014)
In 2014 the Maysville, Ky writers group, Old Washington Wordsmiths, sponsored a public reading by poet laureate, Frank X Walker. Local businesses donated the funds for Frank to also conduct a two hour workshop for local high school students interested in creative writing. Following is a part of my journal’s impressionistic recording of his lecture. It contains two of the five parts of his presentation. NB: these are not Frank’s exact words, only my own poor
interpretation.
1) Visual Perspective
A straight line
On white paper
Is an Open Door
Two beautiful women
Stand on each side
One in, One out
Add a line
That looks Capital
But you’re not allowed
To say L
It’s a literal deadend
A clock eating stillness
An alleyway with
A chair flipped
Sideways
Go up with a line
And you have
A field goal
Steak knife
Swing
One across the top
A rectange becomes
A book-the bible
A podium, a slammed door
Next a circle inside is
A camera, caution
Light, full moon,
Bird’s eye view of
Sledgehammer, looking
Down the barrel of a 45
How can this figure be
All these things?
You do it with words
2) The Myth of the Wooden Teeth
imagination, imagine
you’re a black man
in Mount Vernon, singled
out for inspection,
of the mouth, open wide,
wider, wider, three
of these will do, then
five men holding you
to the ground, metal mouth
wrench like a hammer
to the head, this is you,
YOU, left bleeding there
writhing, a dirty rag
to staunch the bleed,
this is you, part of you
in a museum, not as you,
but as Presidential Denture
3 thoughts on "Journal (May 2014)"
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Oh my! You’ve taken the workshop experience and found a wonderful poem about writing!
how to wear a wig-
and thoughts on
keeping teeth.
nice work here.
I remember that reading- he read poems about Isaac Murphy and Medgar Evers. Your poem notes are apt!