Since the inception of the “Poetry in Transit” program last year,
Mischelle Anthony has become known on the bus as the “Poetry Lady.”
Last year, Anthony approached the Luzerne County Transportation Authority about
putting poems on advertising placards on the county’s 38 buses, and the LCTA
accepted the idea.
An early American literature professor at Wilkes University, Anthony rode the
bus each day to work and thought poetry might enlighten people’s commute,
especially after she heard two people discussing what was posted on the wall —
a familiar sign selling French fries and hamburgers.
“I thought, ‘Oh, geez, they are talking about a McDonald’s ad,’” Anthony said.
When pitching the program to Wilkes University, Anthony was told she would need
to be the “face” of the project, and she reluctantly agreed. All advertising
and marketing of the campaign featured her face. Whenever she rides the bus,
everyone recognizes her — the “Poetry Lady.”
This summer marks the second round of “Poetry in Transit,” as Anthony and the
LCTA will swap the placards and post poems by local poets, instead of classic
standbys that she chose last year. The second launch of the project will
include a poetry reading in the bus barn Monday afternoon, with each poet
reading his or her work.
This year, Anthony involved Paper Kite Press, a local art gallery and poetry
publisher, to help gather submissions from local talent. Paper Kite Press is
run by Jennifer Hill-Kaucher and Dan Waber, and last year moved from Arts
YOUniverse to its own building in Edwardsville.
The three whittled down the submissions to 22 poems, all eight lines or less.
She also formed an advisory board that includes representation from each of the
local colleges and universities, so the program could include student poets.
“For this year’s project, I’ve truly become a coordinator,” Anthony said. “I’m
the nexus for a great creative project.”
Because the public rides the bus, the LCTA had a few restrictions — no
profanity or overtly political or religious poetry. Anthony found this rule
easy enough to follow, though she, Waber and Hill-Kaucher all say poetry is
inherently political.
This shouldn’t come as a surprise to Stan Strelish, executive director of the
LCTA, especially since Strelish’s favorite poet is Bob Dylan, who has always
been accused of being too political or not political enough. Strelish thought
the idea was great when Anthony approached him last year, and he looks forward
to unveiling the new poems.
“We’ve got compliments even from other transit systems in Pennsylvania,”
Strelish said. “You hear people say, enlightening, inspiring, mood-altering. It
is kind of interesting.”
Most of Hill-Kaucher’s poems on the bus come from a period last year when she
had trouble writing. Her father had died, and she couldn’t put her thoughts on
paper.
Waber recommended she read “In Pieces: An Anthology of Fragmentary Writing,” a
collection that includes unfinished essays, journal pages, and insignificant
ramblings on napkins. Inspired by others’ splintered thoughts, she recorded her
own four- or five-sentence-long ideas, and turned them into poems.
“I hope people read them and think ‘I can do that. I can write these thoughts
and ideas down,’” Hill-Kaucher said.
Waber’s poetry is perhaps more abstract than Hill-Kaucher’s, as he creates
designs with words. He wishes to discover things words do that might be missed
in common usage. One of his poems on the bus was inspired by a text message,
and only includes the words “oh rain, oh writes, oh puddles.”
Lamar Advertising donated two spaces on each bus, and the LCTA paid $2,500 for
the production of the signs this year. Each placard will feature a poem, and
then the poet’s name and residence.
Anthony jokes that this year’s poems might have a bigger audience than last
year’s, as gas prices hover near $4 a gallon. The goal for “Poetry in Transit”
remains the same — to give poetry a large audience and get it into the public.
csheaffer@citizensvoice.com, 570-821-2083
“I want (bus riders) to feel a connection, that they’ll feel a connection with
what the writer is saying and what the writer wanted to say at the moment of
inspiration,” Anthony said.