You know how there can be something going on right under your nose but you are unaware for some reason? And then you discover it and it’s just the coolest thing! That’s what happened to me when I interviewed Susan Mason Scott about her poetry. First let me tell you how I met her, and then I’ll tell you about the revelation.
Back in the warmer months I was walking downtown, and as I passed in front of Kim Nyberg’s house there was a woman sitting on the sidewalk writing out a poem in chalk. Always on the lookout for a story idea I introduced myself and made arrangements for an interview. What unfolded is an engaging tale of heartbreak, discovery and expression.
The first thing I asked her, not surprisingly, was how did she come to start writing poetry? “Well, 13 years ago my 19 year-old son was bicycling and was hit by a drunk driver and killed. You can imagine the grief and pain of something like that. So I started keeping a journal and writing down my feelings, as a way to help cope.
“That writing process eventually evolved into poems. And as time went on, while I still wrote about the trauma of my son’s death, I also started to explore my thoughts and feelings about other subjects, about place and family and the natural world.
“My husband Andrew and I were in the Peace Corp and served in Africa, but we also lived in Italy and Portland and Denver and so many more places. We call it ‘inertia’, that just keeps us rolling along. But a couple years ago Andrew’s company offered him a transfer to Madison. We didn’t know anything about the town, but that never stopped us before, so we bought a place downtown and started this chapter of our adventure.
“As luck would have it, Madison is an amazing place, and the art and poetry scene is very vibrant and active. Patty Cooper Wells has been an inspiration and impetus for a lot of poetry readings and events, and it’s gotten me involved with many of the other artsy folks like Kim Nyberg and Jane Vonderheide. I’ve actually been the featured poet twice at the House of Jane poetry readings.
“I’ve also gotten involved in a thing we are calling ‘Poetry in the Window,’ which has been very exciting and rewarding.”
Which brings me to the revelation I mentioned at the beginning of this story. Apparently, unknown to me, there are poems (written by local poets) displayed in shop windows all over downtown! I’ve been walking past them for months I guess and never noticed.
“It’s a concept I saw out in Denver when we lived there,” explains Susan. “You get local writers to submit poems, then you display them in shop windows for all to read and enjoy. Right now we have poems at House of Jane, Red Roaster, Cocoa Safari, Galena Garlic, Growing Minds, Analog Coffee, The Attic, The SPOT and Madison Main Street offices.
“They are printed two-sided, so you can read them from the sidewalk or inside the store. They are one-pagers mostly, so it only takes a minute to read. And if I may, I want to take a moment to address the reluctance some people have about reading poetry. People will often say it’s hard to read or understand. They get anxious if they can’t tell exactly what the writer was trying to express.
“But here’s the thing about poetry. Like any art form, poetry can be literal or it can be more abstract. The thing to do is just read it, let it flow over you, and soak in the feeling it gives you, whether you fully understand it or not. Poetry can have a kind of sonic beauty, where the sounds of the words are just as important as the literal meaning. If you just read it for the beauty, for the sound, you’ll be rewarded for the effort, I assure you.”
Which is exactly what I did after we concluded our interview at Analog Coffee. I walked right next door to the window of Madison Main Street and read the most evocative short poem by local poet Natalie Cox. What a treat! And to think there are so many more gems to discover in windows all up and down Main Street in Madison.
HOT TIP OF THE WEEK:
This Friday you can enjoy the most delightful little live music pub crawl if you are so inclined, all within about a 2 block walk and all with no cover charge. There’s music at Off Broadway Taproom, one of my favorite cozy venues, jazz at Vintage Lanes, awesome classic rock at Rivertown Grill, and karaoke at two locations, Mad Paddle and Tiki LIVE. (plus karaoke on the hilltop at Tailgators if you are up that way.) Saturday you can do it all again, with live bands at 3 spots and karaoke at 2. You’d think with the colder weather and getting so close to the holidays that the music scene might quiet down a bit, but that really never happens in Indiana’s Music City. When we say “Live Music Every Weekend” we mean just that, 52 weeks a year!
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