What I did on Spring Break

While much of the province enjoys another week of break, I am back at work.  Last year, I treated myself to an at home writing retreat and made progress on my second book, which will be published by Oolichan in 2015.

This year, on the first Saturday of the break, my 101 year old grandmother died.

Roberta McKibbin (n. Poole) December 6, 1912-March 15, 2014

My grandmother was a painter who studied with members of the Group of Seven before they were so named, and in her later years, branched into other media.  She was the one who kept encouraging me to take up my art, even when I was overwhelmed with babies. Thanks, Grandma. At least three poems in my next book are about her.

Later in the week, I made my first visit to the 821 section of the Vancouver Public Library, which was a real thrill.  I was shocked to see my own book there, but I guess I shouldn't have been, seeing that I had a launch for that book at the library.

I was only able to take out a few of the thousand poetry books. Here is my quick grab:

I have read my all-time favourite poets first: Deborah Digges and Carol Ann Duffy. Digges' Trapeze was exactly what I needed after my grandmother died, with her poems of grief. I love the way the ideas seem to jump with the line breaks. I love the title poem and "Telling the Bees", which I am sure I have read somewhere before. These poems are both heartbreaking and subtle.  Feminine Gospels helped me, too, especially the first poem, "The Long Queen" which seemed to me to be partly about a down to earth deity and partly about my grandmother. Everyone knows poems become especially poignant in times of trouble, and I found them so this week.

While I as revising one of the poems in my manuscript, and thinking about the order of poems, I came upon a title, "Maps," which my publisher has agreed to be the working title from now on. Now I think it perhaps also came from all the maps of Whistler Mountain I studied when I took my daughter skiing last week. As this was my first time skiing on the mountain in about 25 years, I was careful to study it so I would remain on green runs!

I'm glad I have two and a half more weeks with my library books!  I hope you are reading poetry you love, too.