STORETRY No. 053 - 'X-RAY VISIONS' YeeHaw Our poets are the oracles of the times.
Years ago a group of students at a May Day festival on the University of Utah's campus were selling poems for a few dollars each. I remember the young woman who wrote my poem had long blond wavy hair and was dressed like she had spent the summer hitch-hiking across Europe. She hand-printed her poem on unlined paper. The main image centered on the hare trapped on the moon, which is visible from Earth in a clear night sky. I know I still have the poem, probably tucked inside a book upstairs.
Very few poets make a living from their poetry. Poets usually teach at universities or have regular jobs that pay the bills. When I read NPR's article about this street poet, I thought how brave it is to believe your art will sustain you in all the practical matters of this life. I thought of the original street poet, Walt Whitman. And then I began to hope that this courageous soul, armed only with a typewriter and his words, has somehow recorded his work so they can be compiled into a book.
NPR - A Poem Store Open For Business, In The Open Air
4/19/12 Update: Christine PSS of Madison,Wisconsin opened a words for curds custom poetry and short story etsy shop yesterday. Check her out!
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