Poet Mary Ricketson to be Featured Reader for Mountain Wordsmiths

By Carroll S. Taylor

Mary Ricketson

             Mountain Wordsmiths will have as our featured reader distinguished poet Mary Ricketson on Thursday morning, February 23, at 10:30 via Zoom. Our monthly gathering, sponsored by North Carolina Writers’ Network-West, will continue its online presence because local writers as well as writers from other states and cities are now joining us each month on Zoom.
            Ricketson will be sharing her latest poetry collection, "Precious the Mule." The poems weave a story of humanity, compassion, and kindness. Ricketson says, “My neighbor’s mule got badly injured, frightening all of us who live in this cove. Mingled with the natural beauty of winter and springtime at my home in the Appalachian Mountains, this is the story of a relationship I developed with my neighbor the mule, a story that joins sorrow and suffering with joy and hope.”
            Ricketson, who lives in Murphy, NC, is a Certified Clinical Mental Health Counselor in private practice in Murphy, NC, and an organic blueberry farmer. She has been writing poetry for over twenty-five years. Her poems often reflect the healing power of nature, a path she follows from Appalachian tradition, with surrounding mountains serving as midwife for her words.
            Her published collections are "I Hear the River Call My Name," "Hanging Dog Creek," "Shade and Shelter," "Mississippi: The Story of Luke and Marian," "Keeping in Place," and "Lira, Poems of a Woodland Woman," and "Precious the Mule." 

More information about her may be found at www.maryricketson.com. 

NCWN-West is continuing to stay in touch by using technology to share our writing. We will offer writing events and writing classes online until we can safely meet face-to-face again. Many writers are enjoying the convenience and flexibility of Zoom meetings because of the ability to join our gatherings from other locations.

Those wishing to attend Mountain Wordsmiths may contact Carroll Taylor at vibiaperpetua@gmail.com to receive the Zoom link. We welcome those who would simply like to listen to the beauty of wordsmithing.