Netwest Poetry Group

Tonight I returned to the Netwest Poetry Critique group after a long absence. It was good to be back home in the conference room at Tri-County Community College in Cherokee County, NC. Janice Moore is the facilitator for this group and has been our leader for many years. Janice is also one of the Netwest Representatives for Clay County. 

We discussed the history of this group that goes back about twenty years. Nancy Simpson, Netwest co-founder, told me that Dr. Gene Hirsch started this monthly group when he lived in Murphy two decades ago. After he moved away, Nancy took over the group which included prose and poetry writers. They eventually divided into two groups that meet monthly. Today we have a prose group, which includes all writing that is not poetry, and it is led by Bob Groves. The prose group meets on the second Thursday of the month. 

How fortunate we are in this mountain region to have dedicated members who continue our events through the years. I felt warm and fuzzy sitting down to share my poetry with old friends, writers I've known for years, writers whose families I know, and I am sure I will continue to go to these meetings in months to come. 

Without the eyes of other writers who see what I don't see in my own work, I would likely not have published anything. First drafts are not usually our best work so we need to have others read and give us feedback so we can tighten, cut, or do whatever is needed to make our final product the best it can be.

Thank you, Janice Moore, and all the poets at the meeting tonight. It was good to go home again. 

A Walk Down Memory Lane

In my files, I have pictures taken at NCWN West events and photos used in articles I've written about our members. I thought I'd share some of them today.

Remember?

Glenda Barrett on right with her guest

Glenda, Wayne, Jayne, Lana, Nancy S, Nancy P, JC Walkup

Jo Carolyn Beebe 

Janice Moore, Karen Holmes, Brenda Ledford, Jo Carolyn Beebe, Carole Thompson

Lana Hendershott 

Paul Donovan, Karen Holmes, Glenda Beall

Gary Carden

Ed Southern, Executive Director of NCWN, at City Lights Books in Sylva

Leave a comment if you remember when or where the picture was taken.

Natalie Grant, Nancy Simpson, Janice Moore, Jayne Jaudon Ferrer, Glenda Beall at John C. Campbell Folk School, Thursday evening, November 20.

Poets and Writers reading Poems and Stories is a monthly event at the John C. Campbell Folk School in Brasstown, NC. Two Netwest members are featured. Natalie Grant from Topton, NC and Jayne Jaudon Ferrer of Greenville, SC presented a most interesting program to an appreciative group comprised of folk school students from distant states as well as local writers in the community.

PURTY COWS

I had never thought I had an affinity for cows. I grew up on a farm and cows were part of the landscape -- in green pastures in summer, in brown pastures in fall and sometimes in icy, even snowy pastures in winter. Cows standing belly-deep in cool ponds on hot days and cows with icicles hanging off their noses in winter.

Cows come in many colors. Long ago my father had a beige Jersey cow. Babe had large brown eyes. I liked to press my face against her warm hide and breathe in her scent.

On our farm were black cows, red and white cows and some black and white cows. The typical black and white cow we see on television urging us to 'Eat More Chickin' is a Holstein. During my teenage years, black and white Holstein dairy cattle spotted our pastures. I never thought they were pretty as the Jersey, Guernsey, Black Angus, and Herefords.

A couple of years ago, while riding through a particularly picturesque area, my husband said, "You really like cows, don't you?"

"I never thought about it. I don't think I really like cows. Why do you say that?"

"Because, every time we pass a herd of cows, you say 'purty cows'." He laughed. "I think you really like cows."

That got me to thinking, and I realize that I do, indeed, like cows. Recently on a fantastic fall afternoon driving east on Hwy 64 from Murphy, NC to Hayesville, as the sun slid toward the mountain tops in the west, it cast a glow over everything in front of me. I wanted to stop right there, in the middle of the road, and capture the scene of the hills, the cows and the blue mountains in the background. Of course, I couldn't do that. Highway 64 is one busy road, so I did the next best thing. I turned off, found a spot, and made a few photos. That was when I remembered Janice Moore's poem about cows. She grew up in the city, and I enjoy this poem in which she is first introduced to cows living near.

Comments on Writers Talking All Day About Writing

"Great workshop. Fun, and I learned some good tips. Carol (Crawford)puts on a good workshop." Shirley Uphouse, former Program Coordinator for Netwest

"A lot of my confusion over how to go about putting a chapbook together was cleared up in our group, and I did my best to take copious notes before and after lunch. All of us really got a lot out of it, and got to know each other better. It's been a long time since I've written any new poetry, but I'm inspired to try to find a time and place that's conducive to writing". Carole Thompson

"Great Workshop, Glenda! I enjoyed every minute of it (Nancy is great!) and I met some interesting new writers! What a wonderful event! Hey, we don’t have to import good teachers." Janice Moore

I met wonderful people who write fabulous poetry. Nancy Simpson is passionate about helping poets get published, and she willingly shares her wisdom. I left the workshop inspired, with my head full of ideas for improving my poems and writing new ones!" Karen Holmes from Atlanta

This workshop was wonderful. Carol Crawford presented a well-balanced and structured class. The writing exercises were not only fun but an excellent learning tool. At the breaks, we commented on the excitement of learning and being offer something new at each event. The day flew by. The greatest benefit is the stimulation you feel at the end of the class. All you want to do is get home and start writing. Truly it was a wonderful day. My only regret was that I had to select one class with the offer of two great teachers. Thats life. Carol McAfee, winner in the Cherokee County Silver Arts competition, 2008
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