I’m in Portland, Oregon for the Stafford Challenge Poetry Conference, and Glenda Funk and I have been out meeting people on the streets, taking notes of what to do while we are here.
Taking Notes
Glenda and I went people-ing
on the streets of Portland
asking folks
What’s your favorite thing
to do here?
then smiled for quick snapshots
to remember these kind souls
Ellie likes parks ~ waterfalls and Pioneer Square
Josh likes fishing ~ salmon and rivers
Joe likes running and showed us to a garden
Cheriss likes staying home (she attracts dead ancestors)
Arthur yawns ~ he likes sleeping
Higinio likes remembering Venezuela and Miami
Librarian poet Leslie likes reading and eating Ethiopian food
Matt likes adventure ~ camping on Mt. Hood (he has a feral cat named Big O)
Scott’s favorite thing to do is eat
we are all a human tribe~
how can we not be filled with
such a vast love,
this diverse and unified living of life?
Common Threads 
Kim, love, love the perfect getaway take in your poem. People! And the sweet details you add–salmon, attracting dead ancestors, Venezuela and Miami, eating Ethiopian food. Such precision that begins to show the vastness and diversity of humanity. That last stanza is just such a beautiful and important question.
And then to see photos with some of these people is just the icing on the human cake!
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Thank you so much, Denise! We sure wish you and Barb were here!
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What fun to meet new people and interview them. What was your line of introduction? On my recent travels I have met strangers that became temporary friends. I was especially grateful when the mom near me watched Thomas while I went to the bathroom. I want to hear all about the retreat when you get home!
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I can’t wait to share more about it. The introduction line was something like this: “So we are writers attending a conference for poets, and we’re asking people who live in Portland the best things to do while we’re here. What’s your favorite thing to do?” You know what I notice? When we engage people as experts on what they know, they really open up and share a lot about themselves and their home. Hearing them was one thing, but watching their faces light up while they talked was also a lesson about how to approach people. I’m glad you found a mom to watch Thomas for a few minutes. I can’t wait to share more with you – I enjoyed the conference, but it was a haul to get there and I’m having to budget my energy now.
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This sounds like a wonderful day of people-ing! It’s a brand new term that takes people watching (my specialty) to a new level!!!
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