CPITS reading Barnes & Noble, Santa Rosa

THIS IS JUST TO SAY (for Kathy Evans)

THIS IS JUST TO SAY
             (an occasional poem for Kathy Evans)


Because the collected Love Poems slept all night long
on top of O'Hara's Lunch Poems, Dostoyevsky is implied
though the window sill is composed of pure morning light.
I moved the bottle of grapefruit juice from the floor
beneath the rocking chair (& one lone shoe) to the sink
only to have it explode in the sunlight onto the photos of your children
smiling crazily at us from beneath a juicy glaze—
& Oleg hurries to save them from the indifferent nature
of love in this world; the mathematical division of families—
his own children asleep on the other side of the world,
your mother wondering why a stranger with a Russian accent
answers your phone on a Sunday morning.
We continually face separations of the heart
that is why it hungers for sum totals.
Everything needs translation—
The sea plane outside your window taxies across alluvial mud;
the pilot has to go so far to reach water these days.
The French family on the dock screams goodbye
to their papá as he lifts off from the gravity of this world.
This division cleaves us from what we know to be true.
If only it were so simple: Peterson's Guide to Western Birds
holding us aloft and classified from human wishes,
last year's wives, and the daily remains—
enough to sustain our increasing appetites.
Migratory birds sup most delicately on soup du jour,
the mud — moist, hard and moaning. No free lunch here.
You will not die from the multiple invasions of winter
without a single answer from the abundance of nature.
This thirst we share in common.


4/21/91
Mill Valley  mudflats

1992 Artists' Palette, Mill Valley, 1st Honorable Mention, chosen by Rosalie Moore & Kathy Evans


4/21/91
Hmm, my prose piece is
Easter Sunday, April 19, 1992 typo?

Sunday Morning, Berth 1-11, Sausalito 
GEWOON MAAR OM JE TE LATEN WETEN
         ( een gelegenheidsgedicht voor Kathy Evans)

Omdat de verzamelde Love Poems de hele nacht sliepen
boven op de Lunch Poems van O'Hara zit Dostojevski er ook tussen
al is de vensterbank gemaakt van zuiver morgenlicht.
Ik heb de fles met grapefruitsap, op de vloer
onder de schommelstoel (& een eenzame schoen), op het aanrecht gezet
maar daar explodeerde hij juist in het zonlicht over de fotoos van je kinderen
die met een streep door ze heen naar ons lachen van onder een sappig glazuur—
& Oleg haast zich om ze te redden van de onverschillige aard
van liefde in deze wereld; de wiskundige deling van gezinnen —
zijn eigen kinderen in slaap aan de andere kant van de wereld,
jouw moeder die zich afvraagt waarom een vreemde met een Russisch accent                
bij jou de telefoon opneemt op een zondagmorgen.
We zien steeds scheidingen van het hart onder ogen
daarom hunkert het naar totalen.
Alles heeft vertaling nodig —
Het watervliegtuig voor je raam taxiet over aangespoelde modder;
de piloot moet zo ver gaan om bij water te komen tegenwoordig.
Het Franse gezin aan de kade schreeuwt tot ziens
naar hun papá terwijl die loskomt van de zwaartekracht van deze wereld.
Deze deling klieft ons van wat wij weten dat waar is.
Was het maar zo eenvoudig: Peterson's Guide to Western Birds
die ons omhoog houdt en in een andere klasse dan mensenwensen,
de echtgenoten van verleden jaar, en de dagelijkse overblijfselen —
genoeg om onze toenemende begeerten gaande te houden.
Trekvogels souperen zeer kies op soep du jour,
de modder — vochtig, hard en kreunend. Geen gratis maal hier.
Je zult niet doodgaan aan de meervoudige invasies van de winter
zonder een enkel antwoord van de overvloed van de natuur.
Deze dorst hebben we samen gemeen.


 21/April/91
Maureen Hurley
De  schorren en slikken van Mill Valley
Nederl. vert. Vins van Neerven, 10/92

THE POWER OF THE PRINTED WORD

The good doctor-poet William Carlos Williams wrote: "It is difficult/ to get the news from poems/ but men die miserably every day/ for lack/ of what is found there./ Hear me out/ for I am concerned..." At the risk of overusing this poem, hear me out. 

Imagine a crowded veteran's hall roaring with spectators viewing their children's school work at a curriculum faire, the usual exhibits of math tests, body parts and package products predominating; and a handful of children, sans microphone, bravely standing on chairs, shouting out their poems over this din, willing the unruly crowd into submission, taming them with their flowered words. People who probably never heard a poem performed in their lives, stopped and listened to the children recite these islands of refuge, small poems to keep back oppression behind the backdrop of the Gulf War.

Entering its 27th year, California Poets in the Schools has reached an estimated half a million kids. I can't even imagine how many poems have been generated in that amount of time but it all came home when a teacher handed me a hefty folder of nearly 200 poems typed by five classes of kids during their free time in computer lab. These were the same kids who practiced for six hours straight before the curriculum faire so they'd be ready to sing out their poems to an unsuspecting public. 

Understand that we only met four to six times (though they were double sessions, and we did some art too), but the kids were so motivated by the thought of breaking into print, they submitted two and three poems to the CPITS statewide anthology. How was I to choose? Some poems were new poems written or revised after I left the school.

And I realised that the potential of the printed word reaching out across borders has empowered these students to reach far beyond their classroom communities. It's more than the possibility of fame and fortune (though no one ever exactly got rich quick on poetry), it's the urge to communicate with the larger world, to put a cartesian spin to the quote: I feel, therefore I am. Poet laureate Robert Frost said to write poetry is a brave thing to do. 

My mother reminds me that when the first generation of kids that I taught comes of age, they will begin to make an impact upon society. They are the voters, the ones sent to fight in the Middle East. At a peace rally before war was declaimed, I saw scores of my former students marching, marching down Mendocino Avenue to Courthouse Square in Santa Rosa. They were rightly concerned...

Testimonials from teachers and parents for the necessity of programs such as CPITS continues to grow. Another school administrator facing the usual financial deficits proclaimed: we will not cut the arts from out budget. Since 1982, the CPITS program has enhanced student learning skills and dramatically increased our test scores across the curriculum. 

A teacher from another district said she recently judged fifth grade students on written language proficiency skills. She added, she was surprised to learn that one student who had written several pages (and unfortunately still didn't pass the test—English is his second language), was a former student of hers, a former non-writer. She directly attributes his increased writing skills and interest in language to a CPITS workshop. She listed several students who became "writers" after the CPITS workshop ended. 

I was unavoidably late to class the other day, it was a low skills class where I had to pull teeth to make breakthroughs; one girl wrote to me, "most kids in my class don't understand poetry" and proceeded to write me a poem.

Recent studies showed that on a scale of one to ten, people rate the arts somewhere between nine and ten (the lowest score); but when asked what's most important to them personally, they listed the arts as of primary importance. It is a fact that nationally, more people attend arts events that sports events. 

With over 30 million people, the highest population and per capita of artists, California should lead the nation in financial support for the arts; however in both arts and education (I believe they're both intrinsically linked), California ranks 36th in the nation. Why this discrepancy between personal and public values? In a so-called "primitive culture" such as Bali, there is no word for art because art is part of their every day lives. Why not here in California?

No mattter how primary we rate arts and education in our personal lives, with an enormous state deficit, they are about to take a severe beating. However, if we continue to keep silence as to what is personally important to our lives, these programs will continue to die. 

It's up to all of us to contact our legislators and tell them the financial and emotional impact the arts have on our lives, to support the arts politically, then we can heal the rift, the dichotomy. Why not start with the children? Staking a claim in our cultural future is a brave thing to do. After all, "the pursuit of happiness" is legislated in our constitution. Don't we have that right?

I don't know when or where this was published, it was from Arts Day politicking, so I am publishing it here

Arts funding; Staking a claim in our political future

Imagine a crowded veteran's hall of spectators viewing the usual exhibit of children's school work displayed at a curriculum faire, and a handful of children, sans microphone, standing on chairs, bravely shouting their own poems over this din, willing the unruly crowd into submission, taming them with their flowered words. 

Attracted to our display of poetry and art, one parent bored by the obligatory citiquains passing for literature said, "Thank God for arts programs like California Poets in the Schools, because our children are capable of so much more than this!" A junior high school English teacher exclaimed, "This poetry puts the work of my junior high school students to shame." 

People who probably never heard a poem performed in their lives, stopped and listened to the children recite these islands of refuge, small poems to keep back the oppression punctuated by the backdrop of the Gulf War. 

Now imagine next year's curriculum faire with no exhibits at all, no music, no art, no poetry. If Governor Pete Wilson has his way, he will attempt to defeat Proposition 98 which guarantees a percentage of government funds for school budgets, so that the enrichment programs from sports to dance won't be threatened each year by gubernatorial whims.

The Rev. Jesse Jackson said "It is time to stand up and fight for our basic community rights which means a decent education for every child in America. We must be willing to march, unify, coalesce and if necessary die for the right to an education," he said. "

Arts education is not a luxury" said Bill Honig, State Superintendent of Public Instruction. "We must make the investment... to elevate the study of the arts to its rightful place with other academic subjects in the education of every student." Arts education sharpens children's cognitive development, teaches cultural awareness and stimulates the creativity needed for the continuing economic vitality of our state. 

The State Board of Education adopted a policy that arts education is "an integral part of basic education for all students." Most indepth arts programming in the schools and communities, including California Poets in the Schools, are dependent upon seed or operating money from California Arts Council funded grants and special school discretionary funds. With the loss of Prop 98 and CAC funds, the future for any enrichment programs is bleak indeed.

With over 11 million people, California should lead the country in financial support for the arts and education; however in both arts and education (I believe they're both intrinsically linked), California, one of the most affluent states in the nation, ranks at trie bottom, number 40 (out of 50) in public support for the arts. (At 44th, it ranks in the bottom third in educational support as well).

Compare our $.58 per capita spent on the arts with that of Massachusetts at $2.15. States with much weaker economies provide far greater arts and education funding than California. Why this discrepancy between personal and public values? In the so-called "primitive cultures" such as Bali, there is no word for art because art is so much a part of their every day lives. Why not here in California? 

Arts and education are inexorably intertwined, we cannot separate the two. Please support both the CAC budget and Prop 98 by keeping them intact as the voters have so clearly requested of you. 

Maureen Hurley
California Poets in the Schools

Jesse Jackson, Prop 98 teachers' rally, State Capitol

"Today we are ten thousand strong"announced the Reverend Jesse Jackson to a wildly cheering crowd at the California State Capital April 5, as he led them on a "war to save our children...to save our state and nation." Jackson who advocates that "We must invest in our children while they're children.” He said we must "stop closing schools and building jails.... Teachers cost less than wardens."

During Easter break thousands of teachers and parents, opposing cuts in school funding, rallied on the state capital steps to join forces with liberal leaders including former governor Jerry Brown, United Farmworkers President César Chavez, and the Reverend Jesse Jackson in support of Proposition 98 which assures 40% of the state's operating budget in schools. 

Due to state fiscal shortfalls, the law was suspended by Governor Pete Wilson because the state budget faces nearly a 3 billion dollar deficit. And according to California systems analysts, schools already received a 5% budget increase; "however, schools still stand to lose about 2 billion dollars if Governor Wilson suspends Prop 98 in order to balance the state budget."

Sonoma County schools sent a caravan of nine chartered buses and private carpools of over 700 teachers and administrators to the capital to protest the state budget cuts. Sebastopol teacher Sue Maclean of John Reed School in Rohnert Park commented, "What blew me away was seeing the State Capital ringed with hundreds of yellow school buses. Buses came from as far away as Kern County. CTA officials were quick to point out that school districts did not pay for the buses, they were rented out.

An estimated 500 Sonoma County administrators who attended the Sonoma County pre-rally met with state senators Filante and Barry Keene, and assemblymen Dan Hauser and Mike Thompson. Jim Hansen, who was not present, sent an aide. 

 Many educators were concerned by the apparent lack of support from their elected leaders. One Sonoma County teacher grumbled, "with the exception of Thompson, they all gave wishy-washy statements of assurances to vote for Prop 98 with a package deal." Both Thompson and administrators were in agreement that Prop 98 needs to be a stand-alone line item—not buried in a "package deal", and taxes need to be raised in order to support public education.

The rally organized by the Coalition for the Future, a group comprised of the Rainbow Coalition and the California Teachers Association, scheduled on the anniversary eve of Martin Luther King's assassination was very much like marching on Selma, Alabama, and equal rights, though Jackson's speech was punctuated with political rhetoric and presidential themes such as "We must invest in our children's future because we are morally right, we will win because our children will win." And "Don't give up, don't surrender" which seemed to accurately sum up the mood of the crowd.

I don't know when or where this was published, probably in the paper, I don't have a tearsheet, this was from a dot matrix print out. Hellish to read.