Santa Clara County Poet Laureate Blog

by Sally Ashton | April 21, 2012 · 5:07 pm

Wonderful entries: More poets on the move~

Here comes another installation of Poetry on the Move contest entries to keep National Poetry Month moving.

Enjoy! And if you care to leave a comment, I know the poets would love hearing from you.

Poetry on the Move is a project of the Santa Clara County Poet Laureate. All poems remain the property of the authors.

Sally Ashton
Santa Clara County Poet Laureate

* * *

Something In Us

We grew from ORCHARDS and Sand in this VALLEY.
In HOME garages, great minds CONNECTED us.
ELECTRONS streamed, re(e)-inventing the way we view the world.
Here, the World comes to us, not because of lines that have crossed.
Because something in us Changes lines to include the All in US.

by Nick Butterfield
San Jose, CA

* * *

State of Mind

California
Golden State
Land of Invention
Reinvention
Mother of Invention
Innovation
Promised Land
Land of Opportunity
Promise
Future

by Debbie Ford-Scriba
Sunnyvale

* * *

Going Home
People come from everywhere and wind-up on Stevens Creek,
Some talk to friends on their cell phones, while others, they don’t speak,
Some read a book, others sleep as down the road they sail,
I’m happy to be headed home today on the light rail.

by Stan Garber
Los Gatos

* * *

The Little Spider

Designer and builder
No degree from a school
She builds what she needs
Without blueprint or tool.

Climbing, rappelling
Trailing silk all the way
Constructing radials and circulars
It’s done in a day.

Apprehending a fly
She binds him up tight
Using loops of her silk
He’ll be dinner tonight.

by J. Richard Gaskill
Los Gatos

* * *

Invention

An inventor invents a tool
with the one shape that fits.

An artist invents light
with the right shade of blue.

A mother invents a soup
with her last scraps of food.

A child invents the world
with the ants in the sand.

by Kathleen Goldbach
Campbell

* * *

Antiques

Alas, I have another fear:
Antiques get newer every year.
Computers now are getting old—
I must accept that, I am told.

I guess I mustn’t make a fuss
When they include my old Mac Plus.
I’m sure I’ll see, before I drop,
An iPod in an antique shop.

by Jack Hasling
Cupertino

* * *

Invent-ory

On the train,
in the bus,
no need for defensive
driving.
In the quiet,
scenery passing,
“what if’s” rise to the top.

The best thinking
not always in the shower.
The wheels turn,
the mind’s wheels turn,
replenishing the invent-
ory of ideas.

by Bonnie Home
San Jose

* * *

On the Right Track

It’s a mouse that cruises all day,
in Silicon Valley it finds its way.
You can Google the traffic right around the area
or take the historic trolley without the hysteria.
“Take us to Great America”,
as they jump and scream in euphoria.

by Nicandro Ilagan
Milpitas

* * *

Ode to an Electric Motor
(Powering a VTA Light Rail Car)

Oh Motor — How quietly you propel through busy sanity;

Silently laughing, almost smirking at auto profanity.

Oh Motor — Ever driven forward – Faraday’s electrons pulsing overhead;

Your safe, warm transport sometimes forgotten as dreams turn dread.

Oh Motor — Powering things big and small, keep us on-track through life’s inhumanity.

by B. Johnson
San Jose

* * *

Silicon Valley 3.0

Once dubbed Valley O’Hearts Delight
begat Shockley’s transistors
a silicon birthright

The Farm seeding
ventures to be
computing solutions the fruit of HP

NeXT Jobs and The Woz
thought differently
Macintosh truly an extension of me

iPhoney friends only in numbers grow
#Quantifed-self a friend or a foe?
Crowdsourced solutions IS Valley 3.0h

by Edward Jonathans
Campbell

Poetry on the Move: An official commendation!

San Jose City Council Commendation, April 18, 2012

Here I am with project artist Joe Miller receiving our commendations from the City of San Jose for our work to bring Poetry on the Move to VTA for National Poetry Month. Joe holds the purple car card, and members of the Arts Commission are holding the others. Vice Mayor Nguyen and Councilmember Sam Liccardo are on the left.

Why is everyone laughing? Are City Council meetings always this fun? I have just described to the audience that the competing poets had to limit their poems to 50 words or less, and suggested that the City Council try the same thing sometime. Guess I struck a nerve.

Joe and I are grateful for the project’s success and appreciate the honor bestowed.

Sally Ashton
Santa Clara County Poet Laureate

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Filed under Laureate's News, Poetry on the Move

Tagged as Barbara Goldstein, Joe Miller, Sam Liccardo

by Sally Ashton | April 18, 2012 · 3:40 pm

Wonderful Entries: More Poets on the Move~

Here are more Poetry on the Move contest entries. You will agree with me that there is much talent on the move in the county.

Enjoy! And if you care to leave a comment, I know the poets would love hearing from you.

Poetry on the Move is a project of the Santa Clara County Poet Laureate. All poems remain the property of the authors.

Sally Ashton
Santa Clara County Poet Laureate

* * *

Mornings at SLAC

Steel-toed next to running shoes
(we run to catch beam),
old work boots to the ankle
with nearby sandals and socks,
the richness of penny loafers.
A pair of European calves’ leathers
joins forces with ragamuffin cousins.
Merveilleux!
Each morning we return,
voting with our tired feet.

Janice Dabney
Mountain View

* * *

Don’t relent, invent
Review an old ethic
Traverse the parking lot
With care, a sweeping politeness.
Never rush your shopping cart
On a tear from produce to fresh fish.
The morning walk, rich in eye contact
Vibrant “hellos” to neighbors
Don’t relent, invent, not a gadget
But the simple moment
Of awareness of the other.

Judy Darling
Sunnyvale

* * *

2 Part Invention

part 1 (prelude):

Orchards => Semiconductors;
Canneries => Computers;
Garages => Geeks;
Electronics => Entrepreuners;
Railroad => World Wide Web;
Valley Oaks => Silicon Valley;

part 2 (fugue):

Plant	Look	Imagine	Take	Make	Change
The	Outside	The	A	It	The
Seed	The	Possibilities	Chance	Happen	Entire
	Box				Universe

Karen DeMello
Mountain View

* * *

On the Path

Late sun molds the purple hills

where I pass clefts of watercress

and hardy chapparal, coyotes’ home.

I find my proper size–a moving point

along a path, as in those Chinese scrolls

of men on mountain roads, bent figures

almost disappearing in white space.

It is enough to be a part of this,

hair like grass, stirring with every breeze,

feet falling in rhythm with my heart.

Maureen Draper
Cupertino

* * *

Invention?

Our fragile minds reel at the prospect.
We can do anything! But can we?
Only if we let the mind sing and listen to the chorus.

Anne Dunham
Saratoga

* * *

Grow the Power

Collards and chard
Stir fried or steamed
Sing praise with garlic
Oh happy bones

Parsley, peppers
Anything goes
Hallelujah hair
Testifying teeth

Urban garden
Patience for parsnips
Born again biceps
Pumpkins for joy

April Eiler
Palo Alto

* * *

The sun comes up;
the engineers and entrepreneurs
daily explore all the implications
of digital forms;
they are inventors and schemers,
not designers;
the Great Designer
of user experience is dead;
what’s left?
the specialized ants
who don’t know the color
of the sky.

Bruce England
Sunnyvale

* * *

Alchemy

Can you tell me
What alchemy
Can turn a blooming cherry tree
And a stream of mercury
Into electric energy?
In this valley, we all know
Is where the mind can undergo
Bright, inventive overflow.
It must be in the earth below
What’s planted here, can’t help but grow.

Anne Ewbank
San Jose

* * *

Focal Point

Landscapes shape shift;
Motion blurs everything to gray.
I long to invent a way
to slow the streaming tints:
Pause time for clarity
of sight and mind.

The movement goes on.
I am carried toward what I fear;
I can’t leave this train until I understand
where I’ve been.

Kristina Fluitt
San Jose

* * *

Ocean

At first it may seem improbable
The fountainhead of civilization
Is but the mere human mind.

Yet like a mountain spring,
ideas trickle forth unending;
Consolidate into streams;
Persist into rivers.

Soon enough the torrents betray
The tranquility of the source.
Man has created an ocean,
Which he cannot tame.

David Fong
San Jose

# # #

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Filed under Laureate's News, Poetry on the Move

Tagged as Anne Dunham, Anne Ewbank, April Eiler, Bruce England, David Fong, Janice Dabney, Judy Darling, Karen DeMello, Kristina Fluitt, Maureen Draper

by Sally Ashton | April 14, 2012 · 2:34 pm

Wonderful Entries: More Poets on the Move~

During National Poetry Month, I am posting all of the Poetry on the Move contestants’ terrific entries. You will agree with me that there is much talent on the move in the county.

Enjoy! And if you care to leave a comment, I know the poets would love hearing from you.

Poetry on the Move is a project of the Santa Clara County Poet Laureate. All poems remain the property of the authors.

Sally Ashton
Santa Clara County Poet Laureate

* * *

Your Mission

Growth and renewal
The latest techie thing
Yet pause to TASTE a mango
In our eternal spring

Create, Celebrate
On a virtual cloud
Or write it with a pencil
Then sing your song out loud

Old, new combining
Accelerating ride
Striving to invent your SELF
Should not be put aside.

by Karen Booth
San Jose

* * *

Invention

With a loud “Whoosh!”
a boy on a bike plows
through a pile of wet leaves.

The rain does not dampen
his fervor to share
the news of the contraption

that finally works
after three cold weeks
and one roll of duct tape.

by Peter Bosel
San Jose

* * *

Valley of the Dahls

Los Gatos legend
Gary Dahl got it right:
the creative mode
imposes fresh conceit
on what is known;
entertain short-term
madness, consider what
the world needs now,
aha!–Pet Rock
in a Box—genius
tempered with silliness
yields long-term success
& again aha! why didn’t
didn’t I think of that?

by Jade Bradbury
Los Gatos

* * *

At the Park in Front of the Sainte Clare Hotel

The jacaranda trees are in full bloom, scattering
lavender petals onto the grass. The sun lingers

as musicians all over the city raise their violins and oboes,
the singers standing warm-throated in the wings,

their movements as precisely choreographed as the workings
of clocks. Everywhere, stagehands draw open the curtains.

by Leah Browning
San Jose

* * *

Invention’s Family

If necessity is the mother of invention
then hard work is its father.
Project teams are
its often unruly siblings.
Even that bratty nephew, argument,
Is indispensable.
Sure, having fun and adequate time away
help refresh body and mind,
but invention’s family does not grow couch potatoes.

by Richard Burns
Santa Clara

* * *

Silicon Valley

Spawned from orchard dirt,
ideas that changed our world
first sprouted here.
So, sit back, and relax…
breathe in the fruited air.
We’ll get you there and back,
while you dream innovative products,
create new jobs,
and help get our country back on track.

by William Burns
Palo Alto

* * *

Creativity

~an active word with the potential and power to transform ~ to fulfill.
Original and timeless – it touches others with its breath,
Freeing one to the wonders of discovery.
None remain untouched by its sublime influence.

by Cheryl Chelemers
Milpitas

* * *

How do I board thee?
Inspired by Elizabeth Barrett Browning

How do I board thee? Let me count the ways.

I board thee to the level of new platforms
Alighting is safe and swift.

I board thee with the tap of a card
Smart technology invents thy commute.

I board thee with anticipation
Boundless journeys begin and end with thee.

by Brandi Childress
VTA

* * *

Begin
With what you have.
Your head, your heart.
An inkling, thread, or thought.
Turn on the light
To long nights
Of wonder, of making.
Some small space –
One quiet corner
Of the room. Perhaps
The garage
Could be a portal
To your discovery.

by Kelly Cressio-Moeller
San Jose

* * *

Invention

Spark trips over question
lands on need.
This outsider has room to see
the will to do.
It must be.

Takes what is available,
connects the improbable,
forces experts to perform the impossible.

Now you need it.
Gotta have it.
Will pay whatever to get it.
Another millionaire is born.

by Cathyann Cusimano(Fisher)
Mountain View

Museum Invitational: Join me April 19th at the San Jose Museum of Art, 6:30pm

Next Thursday evening, April 19, 6:30 PM, the San Jose Museum of Art’s monthly third Thursday open evenings continues. Activities include a special advance screening of the Peabody Award-winning documentary series Art in the Twenty-First Century and an art-inspired poetry event. At 5:15 PM, the Museum will screen Episode 1: Change, which features artists Ai Weiwei, El Anatsui, and Catherine Opie.

At 6:30 PM, the Museum will present its third annual Poetry Invitational in collaboration with Poetry Center San Jose. I will be hosting ten Bay Area poets who have written poems inspired by the art currently on view at the museum. They will read their poems in the lobby. Both programs are included with Museum admission of $5 after 5 PM (free to Museum members). The galleries, Café, and Museum Store will be open until 8 pm.

Participating poets will be: David Denny, Rachelle Escamilla, Mari L’Esperance, Samantha Lê, Mark Heinlein, Samuel Maio, Neli Moody, Tommy Mouton, Nils Peterson, and C.J. Sage.

I look forward to seeing you there.

Sally Ashton
Santa Clara County Poet Laureate

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by Sally Ashton | April 11, 2012 · 3:36 pm

Wonderful Entries: Poetry on the Move Contestants!

During National Poetry Month, I will be posting all of the Poetry on the Move contestants’ terrific entries. You will agree with me that there is much talent on the move in the county.

Enjoy! And if you care to leave a comment, I know the poets would love hearing from you.

Poetry on the Move is a project of the Santa Clara County Poet Laureate. All poems remain the property of the authors.

Sally Ashton
Santa Clara County Poet Laureate

Blue Tooth

Intersection of Moorpark and Winchester:
Twelve contented seagulls line up
on the obsolete telephone wire
looking down on the traffic
vehicles full of people
jabbering away
into thin air.

by Mimi Ahern
San Jose

* * *

Silicon Perspective

A giant bay laurel grows in the park,
A sapling when Ohlones gathered nuts
Full-trunked when apricots ruled
Caught whispers from high-tech wizards
Dug deep to hold its ground.
Micro-chips, iPods, internet
Create nothing to rival me yet
Invent away, my silicon peers
I’ve lived for two hundred years.

by Beverly Ainscow
Sunnyvale

* * *

On the Move

Oh travel back to the Valley of Hearts Delight. Do we
remember the fields of yellow mustards, growing with wild
abandon? If you look hard and quickly you will see some out the
window, in the fast disappearing soil of our towns.

by Lucy Amico
Los Gatos

* * *

A Lightbulb Moment

Inventions, Inventions, a spark in your mind
You run to the garage to see what you can find
You have been tinkering for about 3 hours
Inside you, this feeling of power
You test one last time, fix a missing part,
It works, it’s done, Your work of Art!!

Zahra Attarwala, 11 years old
Saratoga

(Note: Brava, Zahra!~ You jumped right in with your own “work of art.” Keep writing! Sally Ashton, Santa Clara County Poet Laureate)

* * *

Invention

Necessity gets all the credit
As mothers sometimes do,
But what of curiosity, tenacity, and dreams?
Those fathers surely sowed their seed
In this most fertile valley
Where the art of engineering
And the job of making beauty
Share a fine ambitious romance,
Dance a complicated tango,
Ever-changing,
Still evolving.

by Sheila Banning
Sunnyvale

* * *

In My Garage

In my Garage I shape the future,
Pour, knead and mold.
In my mind’s eye I nurture,
a seed of change to grow.

Into reality I can see it spring,
Vibrant and alive.
All of humanity waits in wonder,
As a new frontier it brings.

by Charles Barber

* * *

The Frustration Process

In frustration I
threw down the big
new pen

What was meant to be
Was just not streaming

Buffering and loading
Pausing
Stopping altogether

A dysfunctional download
Paper disconnected from brain
As data from screen

Inventor discouraged
Inventee disappointed

An App review…
Appreciation?

by Maya Bhatta
Cupertino

* * *

Fable

Orchards once bloomed wild and strong
Scattering fragrance all day long
The tide of time swept over the land
The soil is tilled by strange new hands
The sun is gathered on silicon shades
The grass grows greener in plastic blades
Songs of sparrows reappear
In glassy fruit we press to our ears.

by Sandip Bhattacharya
San Jose

* * *

Invention Heritage

She gathers soap root in the
Dazzling light of June
Transforming the hairy bulb
Into a small brush
Using ancient technology
She watches swallows
Pack rich mud securing their nests and
Beavers constructing a dam with precision
She climbs the stairway
To an office where Peregrine falcons
Soar past windows

by Marianne Bickett
Campbell

* * *

Silicon Valley

Conceived thru innovation; born from a silicon womb.
Raised on an unstable earth; inspired to challenge status-quo.

Re-inventing itself; new ideas always taking shape.
The imagined now the norm; the unimagined tomorrow’s break-thru.

Diversity fueling social connectedness; igniting collaborative success.
Imagination taking flight; endless possibilities.

by Diane Blum
San Jose

A big round of applause for all ten contestants! Stay tuned for more installations. Subscribe to receive alerts.

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Tagged as Beverley Ainscow, Charles Barber, Diane Blum, Lucy Amico, Marianne Bickett, Maya Bhatta, Mimi Ahern, Sandip Battacharya, Sheila Banning, Zahra Attarwala

by Sally Ashton | April 8, 2012 · 4:58 pm

Car Cards: Poetry on the Move

In case you haven’t had a chance to see them on a bus or light rail car yet, here they are! Local award winning artist Joe Miller, also a poet, created these vibrant designs which themselves convey motion. Let me know when you see them in county transit. Thanks again to all who collaborated in this venture.

I’ll begin posting contest entries this week. It’s an amazing collection of poems I can’t wait to share with you. I salute the writers of Santa Clara County! Happy National Poetry Month!

Sally Ashton
Santa Clara County Poet Laureate

"From the Platform on First Street," Samantha Lê, San Jose

"Accelerate," Dennis Noren, Campbell

"Gravity," Mark Heinlein, San Jose

"Tangents of Invention Early On," Diana Clarke, Sunnyvale

"The Inventor," Danielle Roberts, Santa Clara

3 Comments

Filed under Laureate's News, Poetry on the Move

by Sally Ashton | April 1, 2012 · 7:15 am

Coming atcha: Poetry on the Move!

I am so proud and excited to announce the winners of the Santa Clara County Poetry on the Move contest. The contest, which ran from mid-December through January 31st, asked Santa Clara County residents to, “Send your best poem, 50 words or less, that in some way relates to the contest theme, ‘Invention,’ poems that celebrate who we are and what we do in Silicon Valley. Write about ‘Invention’ as a subject or a theme, or think of your poem as an invention. In it, capture the spirit of ‘making new’ that shapes our county.”

Over 100 residents answered the call! Through a careful process I curated of first and second readers and a final judge, Jennifer K. Sweeney, author of two books of poetry and the recipient of the 2009 James Laughlin Award, five poems were selected to appear on “car cards” in VTA buses and light rail cars throughout April, National Poetry Month. YES, ride public transit to see their poems overhead AND on free “Take One” fliers. (take one, and pass it on!)

Of her decision judge Sweeney writes, “I felt these five poems best captured the daily human experience and the unique world of the journey–that strange collective life in transit–while simultaneously celebrating the locale in a striking way. I am excited for the creative offering of this project and for these fine poems which will live in motion shuttling back and forth across the South Bay.”

As am I~Poetry will indeed be MOVING throughout the county. What a fantastic way to celebrate National Poetry Month. AND, I will post Poetry on the Move contest contributor’s poems throughout the month as well, so stay tuned and subscribe, at left, for updates.

And the winners of the Poetry on the Move contest are:

Diana Clarke, Sunnyvale: “Tangents of Invention Early On”
Mark Heinlein, San Jose: “Gravity”
Samantha Lê, San Jose: “From the Platform on First Street”
Dennis Noren, Campbell: “Accelerate”
Danielle Roberts, Santa Clara: “The Inventor”

# # #

Tangents of Invention Early On
by Diana Clarke, Sunnyvale

Seldom is she smooth
as glossy tile,
graceful as windsong,
more jagged, undefined,
a wildflower sprouting
beside a twisty rail.
No spontaneity—
this, too, can be forced
like a bulb out of season.
She longs to soar on a thermion
in a glowing white mist.

# # #

Gravity
by Mark Heinlein, San Jose

The full moon – golden as December
maple leaves, purity of white
orchids in spring –
possesses enough pull to move oceans,
to maneuver titanic levers of tides.

Down here, we need some heavenly
invention to draw us closer,
body to body, as we move
through the days like the moon.

# # #

From the Platform on First Street
by Samantha Lê, San Jose

a dispassionate rain sprinkles colors
onto glassy morning tracks
faded creatures in shapes of blue and sleeplessness –going

gone the warning whistles of the watchful conductor gone
the smoke that caught the wind
and stained the air

# # #

Accelerate
by Dennis Noren, Campbell

perhaps soon you will span
improbable places
impossibly spaced
perhaps a gritty clarity
will accelerate from waypoint
to waypoint perhaps you
will footprint here
to there

# # #

The Inventor
by Danielle Roberts, Santa Clara

You smelled of melted wax and feathers,
and made wings from anything

you could place your palms upon:
typewriter teeth, broken rulers, stained

piano keys, broken helixes of DNA—
grizzled like the steel wool of Einstein’s hair—
scorched from soaring too close to the California sun.

# # #

These poems will begin to appear in public transit as of Monday, April 2. Bravo to these terrific local poets! Bravo to the generous contributions of the sponsors who made this project MOVE: VTA; the City of San Jose Office of Cultural Affairs; Arts Council Silicon Valley; and my terrific graphic artist Joe Miller who designed these beautiful cards. Please ride public transit and check them out for yourself. And please, let me know what you think. It gets lonely out here.

Note: All are invited to a news conference this coming Friday, April 6, in the News Conference room at County Offices, 70 West Hedding, San Jose, Lower level at 10:30 am.

Wooooooooooooot!
Sally Ashton
Santa Clara County Poet Laureate

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Filed under Laureate's News, On Poetry, Poetry on the Move

by Sally Ashton | March 27, 2012 · 5:55 am

Felicia Santiago: A favorite poem

And Tomorrow
by Tupac Shakur

I really like this poem because it reminds me of the kind of poetry I write and the way that I think. I like how it sounds when I read it aloud. I think that it could mean a lot of different things to different people, which is good. Poetry can be very diverse and affect people in different ways. Tupac is a well-known lyricist and anyone who has followed his work would be familiar with his poetry. I had never seen this one in particular but I do love it a lot.

Felicia Santiago
Student
San Jose

And Tomorrow

Today is filled with anger
fueled with hidden hate
scared of being outcast
afraid of common fate
Today is built on tragedies
which no one wants 2 face
nightmares 2 humanities
and morally disgraced
Tonight is filled with rage
violence in the air
children bred with ruthlessness
because no one at home cares
Tonight I lay my head down
but the pressure never stops
knawing at my sanity
content when I am dropped
But 2morrow I c change
a chance 2 build a new
Built on spirit intent of Heart
and ideals
based on truth
and tomorrow I wake with second wind
and strong because of pride
2 know I fought with all my heart 2 keep my
dream alive

Tupac Shakur

One week from today: Reading the poetry of Rumi

Please join me, Parthenia Hicks, and David Denny for this free event celebrating the poetry of Rumi next Saturday, March 31st through Silicon Valley Reads. Three poet laureates read together with the film “One Through Love” that celebrates the spirit of Rumi’s writings. See you there! Please visit the website for more events and an introduction to this year’s “Reads.”

Sally Ashton
Santa Clara County Poet Laureate

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Santa Clara County Poet Laureate Blog

Wonderful entries: More poets on the move~

Poetry on the Move: An official commendation!

Wonderful Entries: More Poets on the Move~

Wonderful Entries: More Poets on the Move~

Museum Invitational: Join me April 19th at the San Jose Museum of Art, 6:30pm

Wonderful Entries: Poetry on the Move Contestants!

Car Cards: Poetry on the Move

Coming atcha: Poetry on the Move!

Felicia Santiago: A favorite poem

One week from today: Reading the poetry of Rumi

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