By Ann Gengarelly
The seat of the soul is where the inner world And the outer world meet…
—Novalis
(translated by Robert Bly, News of the Universe,
Sierra Club Books 1980)
In 1995 The Poetry Studio opened its doors to young people, ranging in age from 5-17, for after-school programs and summer workshops. Located on beautiful grounds in Marlboro, Vermont, The Poetry Studio provides an intimate lens through which to see the natural world and inspire a deep communion with nature. Offering their devoted attention to the scent of pine needles after a long night of rain, to the patient unfolding of hibiscus blossoms, students are surrounded by rich imagery that finds expression in both poetry and art. The studio atmosphere invites a marriage between inner and outer landscapes, where imagination and discovery are often imbued with magic. A stone walk- way becomes a metaphor for the poet’s sense of time. A Twilight Princess “is called once more / to paint the sky with crimson, lay down the dawn to sleep.”*
Keeping the company of young people, we are convinced that everyone has a need to tell their stories; everyone needs to express themselves. Poetry and art become gateways that lead to journeys where students explore territory that denies “ordinary speech.” To offer a shape to the loss of innocence, the injustices of the world, relationships with family and friends, the many facets of love and grief can help to compose more awake and conscious beings and hopefully a kinder world.
What an honor it is to accompany these young poets and artists on their travels. Their capacity for wonder and wisdom, for compassion and deep ques- tioning, and for seeing beneath the surface of the physical world lifts us beyond the mundane. Along with them, we experience the extraordinary ability to enter invisible realms, often crossing over bridges to mystery.
The illustrations and decorative book pages have a visual relationship with the words and expand the environment in which the poet is working. Often amplifying the language, these compelling images are works of art in their own right that move us to another level of appreciation.
Over the years we have been graced by the students’ inspired work. So many poems and drawings/paintings cover the walls of The Poetry Studio; on various bookshelves colorful scrapbooks hold seasons of poetry and art. Our gratitude embraces all the students who have opened our hearts, whose arresting images have slipped into the bloodstream of many, indelible words and images deeply rooted in our collective memories.
The selection process for this book was difficult, because many exceptional poems and beautifully rendered drawings could not be included. Their absence does not suggest that a particular piece of writing or art is not “good enough.” Ultimately, we focused on a range of voices and imagery to be shared with the larger community: poems that dare to take remarkable leaps; art of surprising imagination and originality; poems and visual depictions that speak to the human condition; poems and art where we feel the poet/artist’s kinship with a tree, a plant—this connection inviting the kind of harmony, balance about which indigenous people speak.
This book reaches out to other young people who may well discover parts of themselves in these pages. Very quickly these poems and works of art invite an I-Thou connection; a word, a phrase, an image that immediately resonates with the reader. Being a witness for many years to the beauty, the wisdom, the grief that often dwells in the young people’s poetry and art, we hope teachers, parents, aunts, grandparents, counselors, librarians will see a dimension of young people not always recognized or valued. This recognition is especially critical in our culture where the voices of our youth can be easily drowned by the cacophony of what seems important. In our world where vulnerability can be perceived as weakness, at The Poetry Studio we bow to the students who travel inward and courageously offer messages of the heart. May this book summon us from the myriad distractions of our lives to encounters of healing and illumination.
* from The Twilight Princess by Linaea DiMarino, written at age 13