Mara Sheade : CPitS Poet Teacher

Lest you (dear reader) think that there are only one or two local poet/teachers, I'd like to direct your attention to some of Mara's work. Here is a great group poem, written by members of Niles Rotary to help celebrate the 50th Anniversary of the City of Fremont. Fremont is in Alameda County (not Santa Clara  County), but we won't hold that against either one.

Here's one of the long poem's many stanzas:

Spring always returns me to the Fremont of my youth. White and pink flowers cloak the bare brown skeletons of apricot and cherry trees. Bright yellow mustard flowers cling to plants and lift softly in the bright blue sky while tri-colored black birds fill the air and I breathe in the earthy smell of fresh turned earth.

Any resident of Santa Clara Vally (and the counties that inhabit it) will recognize these lovely sensory images. 

 

This beautiful photo was taken in 1952 by Charles W. Cushman, who described it in his notebook as "Orchard + yellow flowers near Niles."  There may not be many places in Santa Clara Valley that look like this in 2013, but many of us still hold these trees and flowers in our memories. 

CPITS Campaign A Success Despite Missing the Mark

The CPITS indigogo campaign to raise $15,000 for poets in the schools is done. What an experience! I didn't know how hard it would be to ask for money, to keep asking for money, to remember to ask for money. And even though we fell short of our goal, we still raised a lot of money and even more awareness. I had fun pestering so many people. They were so nice about it!

As Karen Lewis, current CPITS Board Member and Secretary, wrote:

Your tax-deductible* contribution will help students learn to write poems like this:

PEARL

White as snow

as smooth as a knife

crying for its own

like ice cream melting in your mouth

hiding deep down waiting to open up and be free

crisp sugar like crystals in the bright sky

You're not all alone in this small world

~Charlene Neo, Grade 5
Marshall Pomeroy Elementary, Santa Clara County
Mara Sheade, poet-teacher

from Sing to the Heart of the Forest, 2013 Student Poetry Anthology

You can continue to contribute, order a copy of the anthology, find a teacher, and enjoy other student work at our website: www.cpits.org. Thank you!