This version corrects Shane Knode’s first name.
POULSBO — Finnish-Sami poet Gary Anderson, street poet Shane Knode and local journalist Richard Walker will read some of their works at 7 p.m. Jan. 9 at Poulsbohemian Coffeehouse.
The readings are free and open to the public, and will be followed by an open microphone.
Anderson has performed at local and national Finnish festivals for many years. His project, The Sami Exhibit, was featured at the Naselle Finn Fest 2014. His poems have been published in Kippis!, a literary journal of the Finnish North American Literature Association; Curio Poetry, New York; and Outpost 2015, Writings from The Zumwalt Prairie (Fishtrap).
He has been featured in performances on Lyle Haataja’s Scandinavian Hour radio show in Astoria. He recently performed with world flute player Gary Stroutsos at Dayaalu Center on Bainbridge Island. He has published two books, “My Finnish Soul” and “Bunchgrass and Buttercups.”
Knode lives in Poulsbo aboard his 44-foot sailboat. On weekends, he operates a shop called Typewriter in Georgetown’s Trailer Park Mall. He sells early century antique typewriters, select poetry chapbooks and letterpress print art, and types up impromptu street poetry as a live poem store.
He is also the director of a touring bicycle, music, art and film festival called MOBROLL that travels Puget Sound every May as a cavalcade cultural migration exploring around this seaside region.
His poetry is influenced most notably by the published works of German existentialist Rilke, and the Middle Eastern ecstatic Rumi. He is also deeply influenced by the Americans William Stafford, Charles Bukowski, and Robert Bly. His style is inspired by appreciation of letterpress form and process, the cultural gaps found in language translations, the energy and cinema of spoken word-slam competitions, and the dense codification and delivery of hip-hop lyricism, as well as freestyle, improv, and spontaneous poetic forms.
Walker is editor of the North Kitsap Herald in Poulsbo and is a regular correspondent for Indian Country Today Media Network. He is author of the book “Roche Harbor” and the text for a set of 15 historic Roche Harbor images published as postcards (Arcadia Publishing, 2009). He is author of the poetry chapbook, “The Journey Home” (Red Bird Chapbooks, 2012); and co-author of the “Indian Country Stylebook / For Editors, Writers and Journalists” (Kitsap Publishing, 2014).
He is of Mexican/Yaqui ancestry, and much of his poetry is about the struggles of people of multicultural background to hold onto their indigenous identity and traditional lifeways.
His poetry has been published in Yellow Medicine Review: A Journal of Indigenous Literature, Art, and Thought (Southwest Minnesota State University and on Indian Country TodayMediaNetwork.com.
He and his wife, Molly, enjoy cultural events, outdoor activities and exploring the great Pacific Northwest.
The Edge of the Earth
From “Three Postcard Poems”
Gary V. Anderson
Slept in true light.
No ambient here on
shore of Lake Superior.
This morning of
mosquitoes, then
warblers — black-throated blue,
yellow-rumped. No
song equal to
hermit thrush last
night.
Then northern lights.
Wish you were here.
Excerpt from
“The Estuary”
Shane Knode
I know I am not a bird.
Or an aeroplane.
Or a river. Or an estuary.
Or the ocean.
But I am.
A human, being.
Mining the seas for salt.
And the black rocks of authentic integrity.
Small smooth stones, infinitely dark.
Heavy with the density of so many memories.
Compounded into the proof of who I am.
It’s a destiny.
This is my work. Daily in its making.
Meanings that have yet to break the ground of my knowing,
but seeds planted in the promise
of a full bloom-crescendo of moments that flourish
like life with a purpose.
The Journey Home
Richard Walker
It is not their fault, the elder says,
that these people have lighter hair and lighter skin.
It is not their fault that their great-grandmothers
married outside their culture,
perhaps out of love,
perhaps out of concern
for their security and the security of the
next generation to come,
perhaps a little of both.
It is not their fault that their great-grandmother or great-grandfather chose not to go to
the reservation during the time of change,
because they wanted to stay on the land that had known their ancestors and their lifeways
since the beginning of time.
Like people who have been on a long journey abroad, these people have changed,
but now, these children of the diaspora have returned,
seeking to learn and
continue the lifeways
of their great-grandmothers
and great-great-grandfathers.
These relatives of mine are like young ones
who, having had a taste of something good,
now come to the table seeking to become full
in their culture
so they are empowered to live and carry on
the lifeways that sustained their ancestors
since the beginning of time.
I know others call them the white tribe,
says this elder of full blood,
but I am proud of them.
These tears I cry are tears of happiness, she says.
These are my relatives
and my relatives have come home.
New book teaches kids to reach for their dreams
KINGSTON — Author Sandy Hill proves that dreams do come true in the nationwide release of her new Christian children’s book, “Leyni’s God Adventure.”
Can a 5-year-old make a difference in the world today? Can she dream a big dream and make it come true? Follow Leyni as she explores the possibilities of her dream in “Leyni’s God Adventure.” Leyni’s true experiences inspired Hill’s awe-inspiring story.
Published by Tate Publishing and Enterprises, the book is available through bookstores nationwide, from the publisher at www.tatepublishing.com/bookstore, or by visiting barnesandnoble.com or amazon.com.
Hill embarked on a career as a children’s author in retirement. “Leyni’s God Adventure” follows her first book, “Heaven Just Believe.”
Hill and her husband, Gene, are directors of www.Freedom13.org, a nonprofit organization dedicated to ending the trafficking of children. Profits from all books are used to make their dream come true, which is to put an end to child trafficking.
‘Craft Distilling’ author at Liberty Bay Books
POULSBO — Liberty Bay Books in Poulsbo hosts Victoria Redhed Miller, author of “Craft Distilling: Making Liquor Legally at Home,” at 2 p.m. Jan. 17.
Home or hobby distilling has become more and more popular in the past few years. However, there is still a lot of confusion about the legalities around the distillation of liquor.
In “Craft Distilling: Making Liquor Legally at Home,” Miller explains the facts around legal distilling, as well as detailed instructions on how to make high-quality distilled spirits on a small scale.
In addition, she is working with a Washington state legislator to change the laws for hobby distillers. “Craft Distilling” includes a summary of the proposal Miller has submitted on the state and federal levels.
Miller grew up in Seattle and now lives with her husband David on their off-grid farm in the foothills near Sequim. She writes and blogs about homesteading and self-reliance, and speaks at events around the country.
She is also the author of “Pure Poultry: Living Well with Heritage Chickens, Turkeys and Ducks.”
