Best Poetry Book Award

Whoever said award winners are humble people, lied.

Thank you, NCPA for the award Saturday night. It was also an honor to have been

on the program to read from Dangerous Woman..

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   This thing called life,  passion, feelings or  sexuality belongs to us, men and women of all ages.

We still see things we shouldn’t see –

We still feel things we shouldn’t feel-

We still hear things we shouldn’t hear-

We still taste grief, joy, fear,

In a world that vibrates

Through all of my senses.

We are not dead yet.

   Definition

Do not define me by age.

I am not Roosevelt, Truman,

Eisenhower, or JFK.

 

Do not define me by blue veins

bulging out on my spidery arms,

my gobbler, once a Hepburn, Audrey.

 

Do not define me by Rorschach,

On skin brushed with indelible ink.

A Pollock on the wall of MOMA.

 

Do not define me by a new dance step

Shuffling, shuffling –

My heels replaced by clogs.

 

I am

a rabbit out of a hat,

a three ring circus without net,

A whodunit without clues.

War and Peace, chapter one,

The second act.

 

I am

Without epilog.

from my Dangerous Women: Poetry for the Ageless

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Golden Spike

 

The signs were there: when students need to talk

They hang around my desk, playing with my stapler or

Realigning my pens and pencils until there is privacy

For courage to emerge.

 

“Sometimes”, she quietly started , “I get up at three in the morning

And hear my dad crying. I go downstairs and he’s sitting on

Steps, crying in the dark.

He was in the Vietnam War; He won’t talk about it

But I watch him cry a lot.  He can’t sleep. I know because I always

See him on the steps. I wish I knew how to help him.”

 

Damn! Here’s that war again.

No child ought to be wakened  at 3 a.m. by a father’s tears.

No child ought to be sucked in, to twenty five year old wars.

No child ought to have dreams of crayoned images

Disrupted  by black ashes.

 

I wasn’t trained to undo the nature of war.

So I gave her a copy of Golden Spike.

“ I wrote these poems about the war.

Maybe your dad will find this book helpful.”

 

A few weeks later, in her class journal: Private to Miss K.

My dad is always reading your book. And he’s not getting up anymore,

He’s not crying anymore. Thank you for helping him.

Is it okay if I keep the book a bit longer? He wants to know,

Did you know someone from the Vietnam War?

 

“Yes”, I wrote in her journal,
“I knew someone just like your dad.”

 

On the last day of school, once again she stood near my desk.

“I’m sorry we still have your book, but my dad

Is still reading it.  I hate to take the book away from him.”

 

“I gave that book to both of you. I’m so glad

My poems help him.”

 

She held on to our hug, whispering,

“Thank you, Miss Kakugawa.”

from Dangerous Woman: Poetry for the Ageless

 

 

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Dangerous Woman Thanks You

Thank you Eric of Barnes & Noble for the book signing yesterday for Dangerous Woman: Poetry for the Ageless. To everyone who gave up their Saturday morning: my book club members, past and present caregivers of my support group and my memoir writing group, neighbors , blog followers and cousins, my devoted hairdresser Tom, and friends who had no choice when I flashed the promo sheet in their faces, because of you  I can claim it was a great success. It feels good when book shops do not need to return unsold books. Thank you for your caring support. It meant a lot when Barbara was already reading the poem on page 12, saying how fantastic it was. Thank you Barbara. And to you who returned to purchase multiple copies, it did my heart good. Or this email I received before I returned home: “I love love love your book!!!!!! Your writing is amazing, there’s no other adjective good enough to describe!”

 

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Book Signing for Dangerous Woman: Poetry for the Ageless

Hello Friends,

Please join me at my first book signing for my newest book of poetry.

Date: Saturday, November 4, 2017

Place: Barnes & Noble

1725 Arden Way

Sacramento, CA 95815

Phone: 916-565-0644

Time: 11 – noon

( The manager mentioned a book order for 15 books and I said, we will need more.

He warned me that attendance may be poor. Do you have family?  I said, No family. But I have friends.  So he increased the order.)

 

 

 

 

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New Book Just Released

My new book of poems is now available through my publisher and yours truly. It will be mid October before Amazon and Barnes & Noble will have it available. Best to purchase through my publisher : Dawn@bookshawaii.net or through me. Part of my royalties will go to a scholarship at my alma mater for the 2nd year. Purchases from Watermark support local businesses. To my Hawaii supporters, a February visit is penciled in right now. Thank you in advance, dear friends.

 

 

Hawaii

via

 

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Poetry Interview /Reading

Frank Graham of Sacramento Poetry Center will be interviewing me on:

Sunday: August 20

10 a.m.

Brickhouse Gallery

2837 36th St

Sacramento

I will be reading selections from my forth-coming poetry book: Dangerous Woman.

 

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Coffee and Poets

As it turned out, we didn’t have the podcast interview last Sunday but I did read poetry from my soon-to-be-released book of poems: Dangerous Woman: Poetry for the Ageless. And thanks to the audience, by request I read my poems on caregiving from I Am Somebody  and from my children’s Wordsworth the Poet books. AND, excerpts from my Teacher, You Look Like a Horse. What a supportive audience. I enjoyed the Q&A, telling stories of how I started writing poetry,  and my writing process, etc.

My interview has been rescheduled for August 20. Time and site will be posted later.

Yes, that’s my old handbag on the floor and that red feather boa used to add color to one of my poems.

Thank you for all of your who came through the 3 digit heat to support me.

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