April is Poetry Month - Keeping in Place by Mary Ricketson

How to Get Happy

Wait for a breeze, hope that vine of honeysuckle
smells stronger, stirs a rush of fragrance in the air.

Will these climbing roses to open, dazzle the day with red.
Allow a prick of thorns when you grab a stem to keep.

Thank the gold and black buzzing pollinators in the garden.
Beware of attack. That territory is their own.

Taste the air when the tickling breeze finally bustles,
fresh as cold spring water from the source.

Push one honeysuckle blossom to your lips,
slip under the spell of sweet wishes and dreams.
Lazy away, charmed into a summer’s day.

                                         --- Mary Ricketson

Published:  Enjoy the Holidays, a poetry and prose anthology by Old Mountain Press, October 2020, and forthcoming chapbook July 2021 Keeping in Place, Finishing Line Press

 

Mary Ricketson’s poems often reflect the healing power of nature, surrounding mountains 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, forthcoming from Finishing Line Press.

www.maryricketson.com

 

Bob Grove is the featured guest for Mountain Wordsmiths Thursday morning, April 22, 10:30 AM.

Bob Grove

Mark your calendars! Mountain Wordsmiths will be gathering Thursday, April 22, at 10:30 a.m. on Zoom. The event is sponsored by North Carolina Writers’ Network-West.

Our featured reader this month will be Bob Grove. You don’t want to miss his stories.

Born in Cleveland, Ohio, Bob now lives in the mountains of North Carolina. He earned his Bachelor of Arts degree at Kent State University and his Master of Science at Florida Atlantic University. He has taught courses in English, journalism, and creative writing as well as the sciences and psychology.

Bob was formerly an ABC-TV public affairs director and program host, the funder and publisher of Monitoring Times magazine, and is now a popular reader of his works. A member of the North Carolina Writers’ Network and an officer with the Ridgeline Literary Alliance, he is the facilitator for the Cherokee County prose critique group.

Bob has published twenty books and hundreds of articles in sixteen magazines. Most recently, he has written a mystery novella (Secrets of Magnolia Manor), his memoir (Misadventures of an Only Child), a collection of children’s stories (Adventures of Kaylie and Jimmy), some flash fiction including the gold medal award-winning entry in the 2013 Silver Arts literature competition (The Visitor), and a little poetry.

Here’s a refresher on what we’re doing in Mountain Wordsmiths:

Meeting Date and Time: The fourth Thursday of every month, 10:30-12:00 noon

Contact Carroll Taylor for an invitation to this meeting. vibiaperpetua@gmail.com 

Hosted by: Carroll Taylor

The featured reader will share for approximately 20-25 minutes, and Open Mic participants will read afterward. There’s no need to sign up for Open Mic in advance. You can do that when you enter the Zoom meeting. Open Mic readings should be no longer than five minutes. We welcome all writing genres. We also welcome those who just want to listen!

Special thanks to Kanute Rarey for being our technical Zoom guru!

Happy writing!

Carroll Taylor

(706) 464-0819