<html><head></head><body style="word-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; -webkit-line-break: after-white-space; "><div>Dear poetry lovers,</div><div><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space:pre"> </span>I don't know what poetry means to you. William Stafford's poem below says it best for me. I am writing to appeal to you to support our local (Sonoma County) efforts to make poetry accessible to everyone. As you may know, Sonoma County's Poet Laureate serves for two years without compensation or even financial assistance. </div><div><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space:pre"> </span>To further the work of sowing the seeds of poetry we have established a small fund to reimburse the Poet Laureate - currently Katherine Hastings - for her expenses. The Sebastopol Center for the Arts has agreed to act as fiscal sponsor for the fund. You can visit their website at <a href="http://sebarts.org/index.php/literary-arts/poet-laureate">http://sebarts.org/index.php/literary-arts/poet-laureate</a> to make a tax-deductible contribution to making the world safe for poetry. I thank you in advance.</div><div>Larry</div><div><br></div><div><br></div><div><br></div><div><div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 18px/normal Times; ">Poetry</div><div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 18px/normal Times; min-height: 23px; "><br></div><div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 18px/normal Times; ">Its door opens near. It's a shrine</div><div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 18px/normal Times; ">by the road, it's a flower in the parking lot</div><div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 18px/normal Times; ">of The Pentagon, it says, "Look around,</div><div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 18px/normal Times; ">listen. Feel the air." It interrupts</div><div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 18px/normal Times; ">international telephone lines with a tune.</div><div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 18px/normal Times; ">When traffic lines jam, it gets out</div><div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 18px/normal Times; ">and dances on the bridge. If great people</div><div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 18px/normal Times; ">get distracted by fame they forget</div><div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 18px/normal Times; ">this essential kind of breathing</div><div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 18px/normal Times; ">and they die inside their gold shell.</div><div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 18px/normal Times; ">When caravans cross deserts</div><div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 18px/normal Times; ">It is the secret treasure hidden under the jewels.</div><div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 18px/normal Times; min-height: 23px; "><br></div><div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 18px/normal Times; ">Sometimes commanders take us over, and they</div><div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 18px/normal Times; ">try to impose their whole universe,</div><div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 18px/normal Times; ">how to succeed by daily calculation:</div><div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 18px/normal Times; ">I can't eat that bread.</div><div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 18px/normal Times; min-height: 23px; "><br></div><div style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 18px/normal Times; "><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space:pre"> </span>- William Stafford</div></div></body></html>