When one of the state papers published poetry: a Rosa Z. Marinoni "Poem of the Week" in 1960

 

 

Yellowed, brittle fragile, the lone page from November 6, 1960 Arkansas Democrat Magazine (We didn't take the Democrat; I don't know which of my forebears saved this originallly, or even how it ended up in my collection of photos and other memorabilia.)

 

As I was "thinning" stuff so MY descendants wouldn't have to decide what to keep, I found this. Looking it over, I discovered that one of the features was "The Best in Poetry." The subhead read, "All Arkansas writers are invited to submit poems to this column. Membership in a literary organization is not requisite."

Many of today's poets will instantly recognize what I recognized. Here, let me reprint what I saw under the heading "Poem of the Week:"

 

THE GOLDEN FOOTPRINT

Give us a small and peaceful world, dear Lord,

Without detours that lead to a dead end.

A world so small that at each corner turn,

A man can find along his path a friend.

A world where women only live to love,

And man, contented with his simple lot,

Learns knowledge from his heart and not from books,

With no desire to be what he is not.

 

And then, perhaps, along the sands of Time,

Some moonlit night a traveler might see,

Instead of traffic ruts and rusted wings,

The footprint left by One from Galilee.

 

--Rosa Z. Marinoni of Fayetteville

 

She is the poet responsible for the present-day National Poetry Day celebration in Arkansas.

How appropriate this "find" is for April's celebration of National Poetry Month.