Berks Bards welcomes Joseph Ross to join us online on Zoom!
When: June 4th, 2020 at 6 pm
Where: TinyURL.com/VirtualBard
If required, please enter the Meeting ID 759 062 6042
Read Joseph Ross' Bio below:
Joseph Ross is the author of three books of poetry: Ache (2017), Gospel of Dust (2013) and Meeting Bone Man (2012). His poems appear in many places including, The Los Angeles Times, Poet Lore, Xavier Review, Beltway Poetry Quarterly and Drumvoices Revue. He has received multiple Pushcart Prize nominations and won the 2012 Pratt Library / Little Patuxent Review Poetry Prize. He recently served as the 23rd Poet-in-Residence for the Howard County Poetry and Literature Society in Howard County, Maryland. He teaches English and Creative Writing at Gonzaga College High School in Washington, D.C. and writes regularly at www.JosephRoss.net.
Below is a sample poem from our featured poet:
Nelson Mandela Speaks to Trayvon Martin
I walk down Fox Street
in Johannesburg at dawn.
A light rain darkens my shoes,
they scrape against the small
stones. I am standing
in the doorway when I see you
across the street, on the corner,
looking at me. You wear no hood
today. You smile & walk
toward me. I smile & wait
for you. The day begins
here. Coffee & tea stands
push back their canvas
covers. A whistle sings
from the train station.
Your arms swing
at your sides like only
a teenage boy’s arms
can swing. You look
like you might open
your mouth to sing. There
is no SUV in sight.
I am not sure how
to greet you so I look
at your wet, grass-stained shoes,
then back at your seventeen
year-old face. I say:
“Come in, out of the rain.”
by Joseph Ross, from Ache (Sibling Rivalry Press, 2017)
Learn more about Joseph Ross by visiting www.JosephRoss.net
