O Pen February 1 - prelude to discussion + poem "Word of the Day"

Poems for February 1

What Kind of Times are These: Adrienne Rich
This Is the Dream by Norwegian poet Olav H. Hauge, translated by Robert Bly and Robert Hedin
Brother Can You Spare a Dime by William Heyen
3 poems from Liberty’s Vigil, The Occupy Anthology: 99 poets among the 99%
I will not by Kathy Engel (p. 38)
Build the Apocalypse inside your garage. (a Pantoum) by Jules Nyquist (p. 78)
World Conditions Are Such by Leah Zazulyer (p. 114)

(we won't have time for it, probably, but I'd like to include it:
I would like to describe -- by Zbigniew Herbert

The day before Groundhog's Day, and the start of a new month in 2012. As it is an election year, perhaps each month, we should spend some time with poets who challenge us with their voices -- how do we occupy the Earth? which shadows do we admit to seeing, or only pretend to see, or ignore completely.
The 3 poems taken from "Liberty's Vigil" are "...to show us the deeper human meaning that is far deeper than the words, yet indicated, somehow, by the words" to quote co-editor Dwain Wilder. I also have a poem in this anthology -- and met Alice Weiss in Cambridge on December 30, 2011 whose poem, Dewey Square (the OWS of Boston) is also in this anthology of poets from 22 of the United States and 6 countries.
Kathy Engel's poem appeared 1/27/12 in splitthisrock poem of the week.
http://campaign.r20.constantcontact.com/render?llr=7dta6jcab&v=001-jHgZ8K8LRKjB1j-Aeus9P6Fx3jlk0EbQu4bEw4HTuA83_CxrxhAwHdA1zfSZTw7PlJgUObV5j-o_lZINAO1E7Df9SsP1psHMkbpQsEKgeJ5lrnPo3NKfmznPPSn-4U-t6kGKyAi3_AiTMbutw5nsqnUFifopsvpiCqoQG6ybD56F1NAk0d4-DVNH-76m6ez4Ek5nw3enq35bUAjYOvF053kOkUzafEpSRGLStxohmc%3D


my poem:
The Word of the Day

scro bic u late: having many small
grooves; furrowed
spells scour/bake; it rhymes: you’re late
sounds like crows, skewers, all that’s scraped

a four-syll-battle cry that ends with ATE
as in consumed, as in greedy as in abominate
accelerate, confiscate, asphyxiate,

as in what we break, but do not plough
as in what we hate but still allow as in
land-rape, scape-goat, throat-cloak,
bloat until scope inflates, as in I had

a dream, a poem, a word (in a word) made
for planting –
a new word to a-
light, yes, we’re waiting for a furrowed word
that moves L from the loud clack of cloud
to the soft strummed could.

All of this written because of one word.

**


From Karla Merrifield, Co-editor of Liberty’s Vigil: (send 1/27)Our poems CAN make a difference. Read the moving story of
homelessness at http://www.sfreporter.com/santafe/article-6534-homeless-in-santa-fe.html shared by Jules Nyquist and Mary Strong Jackson, (p 59: The New Homeless Rage)

In her introduction, she starts with the statement of her belief that poets are the world's most experienced decision-makers. Of course, the idea of best word, best order -- or simply the decision to pick up the pen and write; to decide on topics of poems; verbs; images, figures of speech, stanza breaks

So much depends / on weather / and the thin/ quality/ of mercy.

and then we continue to decide as we revise.

I don't know about "most experienced" -- but certainly the requirement of decision-making and training, help decide what actions to take in daily living,
and the poems help bring a candle to them for the reader.