Dear Friends,
It’s National Poetry Month! While I am not a poet, I appreciate how poetry seems to have a magic and a power about it. I’m in awe of the way poets can take the inner workings of the heart and mind, the contemplation of a single leaf or an entire country, and turn them into carefully chosen words that make me think, feel, and wonder.
Many of our staff and patrons feel the energy of spring and the joy of having a whole month to celebrate poetry. When you step inside the library, you’ll find piles of poems by the circulation desk to take with you or to take a moment to enjoy. You’ll find poems tucked into corners of the library, inviting you to pause for a moment to engage with them. These poems have been selected by members of the Skidompha Poetry Group, who have met every Friday for the last two years to kick off the weekend by reading poetry together. They meet on Fridays at 10:00 and are always happy to see new faces!
You’ll have a chance to read poems in the kids and teen rooms and maybe even create your own poetry with sidewalk chalk! Youth Services has an incredible selection of poetry books to take home with you, too.
You can also join Haiku Hikers this month! Join Adult Services Librarian Molly for this wandering Haiku club. During this quiet, reflective series, participants will visit different locations around Damariscotta to appreciate nature and compose haiku. No experience is required! Please bring a notebook, a writing utensil, weather-appropriate clothing, and your curiosity! Rain or shine, Haiku Hikers will depart from Skidompha Public Library’s front entrance at 9 a.m. on April 7, 14, 21, & 28. We hope those who want to will join forces with our poetry group to share their creations.
I’m also challenging myself to notice poetry all around me this month—the kind that is not found on the page but rather in those quiet moments I witness on my daily walk, the sounds I hear in my back garden, or in the beauty of seeing two old friends greet each other after an absence.
I’d love to hear the moments in your month that inspire you to pause and notice. Please let us know if there are favorite poets in your life or poems you return to again and again.
Be well,
Matthew Graff
Executive Director
Skidompha Public Library