Grateful to be chosen as the 11th Poet Laureate of Portsmouth

On April 3rd, 2017, I was read and handed the proclamation by Jack Blalock, Mayor of Portsmouth, New Hampshire, to be the 11th Poet Laureate of Portsmouth for a two-year term.

For many years the poetry community of Portsmouth has given me the gift of honoring my voice. I want to use my position as laureate to give that gift back to Portsmouth and New Hampshire abroad by creating platforms for a diversity of voices to be heard.

Writing poetry is usually a solitary practice and an important way of staying in touch with one’s own heart and mind. But it wasn’t until I read my poetry in public that I realized poetry’s other essential function. At the poetry reading everyone has a say, everyone’s voice is valued, everyone listens and everyone is heard. Poetry is a way to stay in touch with each other’s hearts and minds. And there’s no real community without that.

I’m extremely grateful for this honor. I look forward to working with the PPLP and the city to keep doing what I love and bring people together to write and read poetry in an atmosphere of diversity and inclusiveness. The plight of refugees and immigrants in New Hampshire, as well as anyone who struggles to be heard and understood, is very close to my heart. Everyone has a voice that needs to be honored and I want to reach out and find the hidden poets and amplify their voices. I look forward to playing an ever greater part in the building of this incredibly vibrant and compassionate community of Portsmouth.

Watch the video of the induction ceremony here.