Third Thursday Poetry Night: Joel Best, August 17

Back at the Social Justice Center for the monthly open mic, with tonight’s featured poet, Joel Best. A good mix of community poets showed up, some who hadn’t been here in a while, others for the 1st time. But first to invoke the Muse, tonight the Albany poet & activist — for peace, for social justice & to protect the environment (& our asses) — Tom Nattell, I read his poem for the anniversary of the bombing by the United States of America of the Japanese city of Hiroshima on August 6, 1945 “Hiroshima.”

First up to the open mic, as she likes to be, was Sylvia Barnard, who read about a recent trip back to the UK with her daughter, sea gulls on the beach on the Hampshire coast like her father’s cows in the Summer rain. Tom Bonville read “Going Going Maybe Gone” on the possible future of the US, then snuck in a 2nd poem (both short), on love & Jerry Lewis’ laugh. I hadn’t seen poet Andy Fogle here in a few years, so it was good to have him back, he said he has been working on a book of poems about the abolitionist John Brown, then read one of the poems based on a trip to John Brown’s farm in North Elba, NY with his daughter, “Snow Angels at John Brown’s Farm.”

Many years ago before I moved back to Albany I had a poem published in a zine published here titled Tin Wreath, the editor was David Gonsalves, & tonight he joined us to read a very short poem “Hide & Seek.” Melissa Anderson was back again to read a richly descriptive piece inspired by a trip to the desert in Saudi Arabia “Desert Country.”

I’ve enjoyed hearing Joel Best’s poetry at his regular appearances at the 2nd Sunday @ 2 open mic at Collar City Mushrooms in Troy. His collection of poems august, never had been accepted by Finishing Line Press but he eventually published it himself. He said that he doesn’t write topical pieces, rarely personal poems, instead he writes what he calls “altered mythologies, or fragmented mythologies,” writes a lot of lines then cuts & pastes to create the poem; most of his poems are short. 

Among the poems he read was “departed” (from august, never (2023)) which had been 

written for his church’s annual poetry service; another that could be called “mythological” was “a play at god,” which included a church, a graveyard ceremony, a dress, mixed like a dream, as most of his poems are. He said that the poem “Kunder Chunk” gets its title from the sound a heart makes after making love, & “On the Porch” was another sort of love poem. As a visual artist, Joel said he likes to do automatic drawings (surrealist that he is) & read a poem he titled “Automatic Writing” somehow mixing in a photo of naked mountain climbers. 

Joel had 2 self-published books for sale, Family Album (2022) that included as illustrations altered family photos, & august, never (2023), which he offered for sale this night for donations & then donated the sales to the Social Justice Center. I hope he keeps cranking out his poems & art; you can find some of his artwork as well as poetry on his website. 

After the break, & book sale, we continued on with the open mic. I led off with a new poem about “the Bomb” titled “A Poem for August 6th.” Joan Goodman got on the list & read a just written long piece in vignettes based upon her experience visiting folks in nursing homes & hospices.

The next 2 readers were once the featured poets at Poets in the Park, my only booking (so far) of a father & daughter team; Lance LeGrys (the father) read first, “Whiskey & Sparrows” about watching chipping sparrows from his deck, imaging them as golfers on the course. 

Alex LeGrys (the daughter) read  “Co-Existence,” a portrait & an encounter.

The last 2 open mic poets were new to me, always a welcome event. Dirk de Jong wrote about his experience as an immigrant 50 years ago ”Beer from a Bottle,” about newness & strangeness & not feeling at ease. Barto Morales had just signed up at the last minute & read a love poem “The Universe Smiled at Me,” said he usually writes in Spanish, & this was one of his first efforts writing in English.

Join us each third Thursday for a reading by a local or regional poet & an open mic for the rest of us, your $5.00 donation supports this & other poetry events & the work of the Social Justice Center.  Bring a poem to read.