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Mid-Valley Poetry Society Stafford Centennial Art Exhibit in Salem Nov. 5-22 The poetry of Oregon’s beloved former Poet Laureate, William Stafford (1914-1993), has not only influenced many other poets in the Northwest and far beyond, but it has also inspired numerous visual artists. As part of the continuing celebration of Stafford’s centennial year, an exhibit ...

Shawn Aveningo:

Reverberations from Fukushima: 50 Japanese Poets Speak Out, reviewed by Ruthy Kanagy Review by Ruthy Kanagy Reverberations from Fukushima: 50 Japanese Poets Speak Out Edited by Leah Stenson and Asao Sarukawa Aroldi Inkwater Press (Portland, Oregon) ISBN: 9781629010656 2014, 192pp., $14.95 3.11.11 is a date forever imprinted on the memories of Japanese and other persons who were in Japan on that fateful day. A massive tsunami launched by a ‘thousand-year’ magnitude 9.0 earthquake inundated 400 miles of Pacific coastline north of Tokyo – about the distance from San Francisco to Los Angeles. It took the lives of 18,000 people and swept away farms, homes, fishing villages and whole cities. In the days following, multiple hydrogen explosions and meltdowns at the Fukushima Daiichi (No. 1) Nuclear Power Station, 160 miles north of Tokyo, forced the evacuation of 140,000 citizens who had to abandon pets, livestock, farms, and businesses, tearing apart centuries-old ways of life. Almost four years later, we in the U.S. hear little about the aftermath of the nuclear ...

Ruth Harrison: An Appreciation At the Fall 2013 OPA Conference in Forest Grove, Ruth F. Harrison was honored with a lifetime membership. In tribute to her, “Ruth Harrison: An Appreciation” was presented by Eleanor Berry, OPA President Emerita. Over the past dozen or so years in which I have been active in O(S)PA, it has been my privilege to get to know many fine poets and capable workers on behalf of Oregon poets and poetry. One who has seemed to me—and to many others—an extraordinarily luminous presence is Ruth Harrison. To the best of my recollection, it was at one of the first OSPA conferences I attended that I met Ruth. I remember that she was standing by me in the lunch line, and that we fell into conversation. I remember being drawn to her quiet intelligence and warmth. All the subsequent occasions I’ve spent time with Ruth or her poetry have reinforced that first impression. When ...