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***This is #119 in a never-ending series called BACKSTORY OF THE POEM where the Chris
Rice Cooper Blog (CRC) focuses on one specific poem and how the poet wrote
that specific poem. All BACKSTORY OF THE POEM links are at the end
of this piece.
#119 Backstory of the Poem:
“In Remembrance of Them” by Janet Renee Cryer
“In Remembrance of Them” by Janet Renee Cryer
Can you go
through the step-by-step process of writing this poem from the moment the idea
was first conceived in your brain until final form? When
I write a poem, it just comes to me. There isn't a planning or thought session
when I write. The only time I had that is when I taught a poetry class. It was
the hardest writing I did because it was structured. My work is typically not
structured. Something random will pop in my head. Then I will sit down to
write. When the thought has completely dissipated, the poem ends.
Where were you when you started to
actually write the poem? And please describe the place in great detail. I was sitting in the living room watching t.v. My friend had asked me to write a piece for
their reunion. I didn't write this piece for months after she asked me. Then a
random commercial, I couldn't even tell you what it was came on and I
remembered I had to write a piece for my friend. I messaged her to make sure it
hadn't been too late. Most of our school reunions happen in September and it
was already like June the next year. I just remember it was cold because my
husband keeps the a.c. on full blast. I was sitting in my huge leather recliner
with a blanket covering me. It is a Mexican blanket my father brought back from
a missionary trip. I cuddle in it year round. It is yellow based with brown
stripes vertical and horizontal.
What month and year did you start writing this poem? I believe it was June but could have been May. June 2018
How many drafts of this poem did you
write before going to the final? (And can you share a photograph of your rough
drafts with pen markings on it?) This was a poem
I wrote on my phone. Sometimes I don't always have a pen and paper so I write
on my phone. Actually, until I got a new notebook, I have been writing on my
cell more than on paper. I did one rough draft and normally I don't do any. The
reason being, my spirit knows exactly what message I need to write. The only
reason, I would have to do a rewrite would be for grammatical purposes.
Were there any lines in any of your
rough drafts of this poem that were not in the final version? And can you share
them with us? The word Keep was removed but
outside that, no.
What do you want readers of this poem to take from this poem?
What do you want readers of this poem to take from this poem?
This poem was about classmates that have passed on. That no
matter if the classmates are here in life or passed on a piece of them will
always remain. Not to forget that each of us that walk the halls of the school
leaves a bit of us there.
Which part of the poem was the most emotional
of you to write and why? All of it was. Even
though I was writing for the class that graduated prior to us, I was
remembering our classmates that passed on and it was not too long after my
father passed, so it brought me back to him as well. I was nearly crying by the
time this was completed. We have lost too many people too early in life. I
really didn't want to write this piece but I always tell my friends if they
need me to write for them, I will. So I did. I was one of the first piece I
wrote since my father's passing two years prior.
Has this poem been published before? And
if so where? No, it hasn't. I was waiting to
post it on fbk until after the high school reunion. It was to take place in
June 2019 but there was a hiccup in the plans. So they had to postpone it.
Anything you
would like to add? Don't let the world boss you. You have to be
true to yourself. If you aren't you are going to block all the blessings you
can and will receive. Though I don't write as often as I formerly did, it doesn't
mean I am not a write/poet/author. God gave me this gift to share and love all.
God loves you and so do I!!
In Remembrance of Them...
As we walked down the aisle
of graduation,
We have no idea where of what
we will be doing next,
Dreams of doctors, football
players, and teachers are on our mind,
Making sure we made the
grade,
Working every summer to save
our coins.
One thing we don't plan on in
our early life,
We don't foresee death before
retirement,
Yet it happens,
We have already lost so many,
Though they are still here,
Some in our hearts,
Some in our memories,
But a piece of every student
continues to walk the halls,
The Eagle guides us into our
next dimension,
Whether it is continuing our
life long dreams,
Our souls taking an early
rest,
Or just taking a vacation
before the next step,
So as we look around us,
Seeing seats that are no
longer filled with bodies,
Those that are no longer with
us in the flesh,
Will always be with us in
mind and soul,
Just remember their smiles,
Our laughter,
Our tears,
Cheering for the next win,
Hugging because we struggled,
We all have a destiny,
Theirs have already been
fulfilled,
So lets keep take a moment,
Remember all as we gathered
again,
No matter what happens,
We all will be flying on the
wings and prayers,
Today, we have smiles,
Tonight, there will be no
more tears.
Though on stage and social media you know me as Starr Poetress,
I am Janet Renee Cryer. Long time and poetic friends call me Starr but that is
slowly changing to back to Renee. This is about me, the President of Growth of
The Poets Without Limits Magazine here I go: I am a Christian, Wife, Mother,
Daughter, Sister, Friend, and published author. You can find me on Amazon.com,
Broken Bars Publishing, Lulu.com for independent books, and in multiple anthologies
via Inner Child Press and other publishing houses. I welcome friends since I never met a
stranger. I was, formerly, the senior editor for other editorials in
Oklahoma. I pray you have a blessed day
and don't forget to write from the soul, that is where our muse speaks to us
from... JRC
Poetress@rocketmail.com
Poetress@rocketmail.com
Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/1hotpoetress
On
Instagram: starrsky55
BACKSTORY OF THE POEM
LINKS
001 December 29, 2017
Margo
Berdeshevksy’s “12-24”
002 January 08, 2018
Alexis
Rhone Fancher’s “82 Miles From the Beach, We Order The Lobster At Clear Lake
Café”
003 January 12, 2018
Barbara
Crooker’s “Orange”
004 January 22, 2018
Sonia
Saikaley’s “Modern Matsushima”
005 January 29, 2018
Ellen
Foos’s “Side Yard”
006 February 03, 2018
Susan
Sundwall’s “The Ringmaster”
007 February 09, 2018
Leslea
Newman’s “That Night”
008 February 17, 2018
Alexis
Rhone Fancher “June Fairchild Isn’t Dead”
009 February 24, 2018
Charles
Clifford Brooks III “The Gift of the Year With Granny”
010 March 03, 2018
Scott
Thomas Outlar’s “The Natural Reflection of Your Palms”
011 March 10, 2018
Anya
Francesca Jenkins’s “After Diane Beatty’s Photograph “History Abandoned”
012 March 17, 2018
Angela
Narciso Torres’s “What I Learned This Week”
013 March 24, 2018
Jan
Steckel’s “Holiday On ICE”
014 March 31, 2018
Ibrahim
Honjo’s “Colors”
015 April 14, 2018
Marilyn
Kallett’s “Ode to Disappointment”
016 April 27, 2018
Beth
Copeland’s “Reliquary”
017 May 12, 2018
Marlon
L Fick’s “The Swallows of Barcelona”
018 May 25, 2018
Juliet
Cook’s “ARTERIAL DISCOMBOBULATION”
019 June 09, 2018
Alexis
Rhone Fancher’s “Stiletto Killer. . . A Surmise”
020 June 16, 2018
Charles
Rammelkamp’s “At Last I Can Start Suffering”
021 July 05, 2018
Marla
Shaw O’Neill’s “Wind Chimes”
022 July 13, 2018
Julia Gordon-Bramer’s
“Studying Ariel”
023 July 20, 2018
Bill Yarrow’s “Jesus
Zombie”
024 July 27, 2018
Telaina Eriksen’s “Brag
2016”
025 August 01, 2018
Seth Berg’s “It is only
Yourself that Bends – so Wake up!”
026 August 07, 2018
David Herrle’s “Devil In
the Details”
027 August 13, 2018
Gloria Mindock’s “Carmen
Polo, Lady Necklaces, 2017”
028 August 21, 2018
Connie Post’s “Two
Deaths”
029 August 30, 2018
Mary Harwell Sayler’s
“Faces in a Crowd”
030 September 16, 2018
Larry Jaffe’s “The
Risking Point”
031 September 24,
2018
Mark Lee Webb’s “After
We Drove”
032 October 04, 2018
Melissa Studdard’s
“Astral”
033 October 13, 2018
Robert Craven’s “I Have
A Bass Guitar Called Vanessa”
034 October 17, 2018
David Sullivan’s “Paper Mache
Peaches of Heaven”
035 October 23, 2018
Timothy Gager’s
“Sobriety”
036 October 30, 2018
Gary Glauber’s “The
Second Breakfast”
037 November 04, 2018
Heather Forbes-McKeon’s
“Melania’s Deaf Tone Jacket”
038 November 11, 2018
Andrena Zawinski’s
“Women of the Fields”
039 November 00, 2018
Gordon Hilger’s “Poe”
040 November 16, 2018
Rita Quillen’s “My
Children Question Me About Poetry” and “Deathbed Dreams”
041 November 20, 2018
Jonathan Kevin Rice’s
“Dog Sitting”
042 November 22, 2018
Haroldo Barbosa Filho’s
“Mountain”
043 November 27, 2018
Megan Merchant’s “Grief Flowers”
044 November 30, 2018
Jonathan P Taylor’s
“This poem is too neat”
045 December 03, 2018
Ian Haight’s “Sungmyo
for our Dead Father-in-Law”
046 December 06, 2018
Nancy Dafoe’s “Poem in
the Throat”
047 December 11, 2018
Jeffrey Pearson’s “Memorial
Day”
048 December 14, 2018
Frank Paino’s “Laika”
049 December 15, 2018
Jennifer Martelli’s
“Anniversary”
O50 December 19, 2018
Joseph Ross’s “For Gilberto Ramos, 15, Who Died in
the Texas Desert, June 2014”
051 December 23, 2018
“The Persistence of
Music”
by Anatoly Molotkov
052 December 27, 2018
“Under Surveillance”
by Michael Farry
053 December 28, 2018
“Grand Finale”
by Renuka Raghavan
054 December 29, 2018
“Aftermath”
by Gene Barry
055 January 2, 2019
“&”
by Larissa Shmailo
056 January 7, 2019
“The Seamstress:
by Len Kuntz
057 January 10, 2019
"Natural History"
by Camille T Dungy
058 January 11, 2019
“BLOCKADE”
by Brian Burmeister
059 January 12, 2019
“Lost”
by Clint Margrave
060 January 14, 2019
“Menopause”
by Pat Durmon
061 January 19, 2019
“Neptune’s Choir”
by Linda Imbler
062 January 22, 2019
“Views From the
Driveway”
by Amy Barone
063 January 25, 2019
“The heron leaves her
haunts in the marsh”
by Gail Wronsky
064 January 30, 2019
“Shiprock”
by Terry Lucas
065 February 02, 2019
“Summer 1970, The
University of Virginia Opens to Women in the Fall”
by Alarie Tennille
066 February 05, 2019
“At School They Learn
Nouns”
by Patrick Bizzaro
067 February 06, 2019
“I Must Not Breathe”
by Angela Jackson-Brown
068 February 11, 2019
“Lunch on City Island,
Early June”
by Christine Potter
069 February 12, 2019
“Singing”
by Andrew McFadyen-Ketchum
070 February 14, 2019
“Daily Commute”
by Christopher P. Locke
071 February 18, 2019
“How Silent The Trees”
by Wyn Cooper
072 February 20, 2019
“A New Psalm
of Montreal”
by Sheenagh Pugh
073 February 23, 2019
“Make Me A
Butterfly”
by Amy Barbera
074 February 26, 2019
“Anthem”
by Sandy Coomer
075 March 4, 2019
“Shape of a Violin”
by Kelly Powell
076 March 5, 2019
“Inward Oracle”
by J.P. Dancing Bear
077 March 7, 2019
“I Broke
My Bust Of Jesus”
by Susan Sundwall
078 March 9, 2019
“My Mother
at 19”
by John Guzlowski
079 March 10, 2019
“Paddling”
by Chera Hammons Miller
080 March 12, 2019
“Of Water
and Echo”
by Gillian Cummings
081 082
083 March 14, 2019
“Little
Political Sense” “Crossing Kansas with
Jim
Morrison” “The Land of Sky and Blue Waters”
by Dr. Lindsey
Martin-Bowen
084 March 15, 2019
“A Tune To
Remember”
by Anna Evans
085 March 19, 2019
“At the
End of Time (Wish You Were Here)
by Jeannine Hall Gailey
086 March 20, 2019
“Garden of
Gethsemane”
by Marletta Hemphill
087 March 21, 2019
“Letters
From a War”
by Chelsea Dingman
088 March 26, 2019
“HAT”
by Bob Heman
089 March 27, 2019
“Clay for
the Potter”
by Belinda Bourgeois
#090 March 30, 2019
“The Pose”
by John Hicks
#091 April 2, 2019
“Last
Night at the Wursthaus”
by Doug Holder
#092 April 4, 2019
“Original
Sin”
by Diane Lockward
#093 April 5, 2019
“A Father
Calls to his child on liveleak”
by Stephen Byrne
#094 April 8, 2019
“XX”
by Marc Zegans
#095 April 12, 2019
“Landscape
and Still Life”
by Marjorie Maddox
#096 April 16, 2019
“Strawberries
Have Been Growing Here for Hundreds of
Years”
by Mary Ellen Lough
#097 April 17, 2019
“The New
Science of Slippery Surfaces”
by Donna Spruijt-Metz
#098 April 19, 2019
“Tennessee
Epithalamium”
by Alyse Knorr
#099 April 20, 2019
“Mermaid,
1969”
by Tameca L. Coleman
#100 April 21, 2019
“How Do
You Know?”
by Stephanie
#101 April 23, 2019
“Rare Book
and Reader”
by Ned Balbo
#102 April 26, 2019
“THUNDER”
by Jefferson Carter
#103 May 01, 2019
“The sight
of a million angels”
by Jenneth Graser
#104 May 09, 2019
“How to
tell my dog I’m dying”
by Richard Fox
#105 May 17, 2019
“Promises
Had Been Made”
by Sarah Sarai
#106 June 01, 2019
“i sold
your car today”
by Pamela Twining
#107 June 02, 2019
“Abandoned
Stable”
by Nancy Susanna Breen
#108 June 05, 2019
“Cupcake”
by Julene Tripp Weaver
#109 June 6, 2019
“Bobby’s
Story”
by Jimmy Pappas
#110 June 10, 2019
“When You
Ask Me to Tell You About My Father”
by Pauletta Hansel
#111 Backstory of the
Poem’s
“Cemetery
Mailbox”
by Jennifer Horne
#112 Backstory of the Poem’s
“Relics”
by Kate Peper
#113 Backstory of the
Poem’s
“Q”
by Jennifer Johnson
#114 Backstory of the
Poem’s
“Brushing My Hair”
by Tammika Dorsey Jones
#115 Backstory of the
Poem
“Because the Birds Will
Survive, Too”
by Katherine Riegel
#116 Backstory of the Poem
“DIVORCE”
“DIVORCE”
by Joan Barasovska
#117 Backstory of the
Poem
“NEW
YEAR”S EVE 2016”
by Michael Meyerhofer
#118 Backstory of the
Poem
“Dear the
estranged,”
by Gina Tron
#119 Backstory of the Poem
“In Remembrance of Them”
by Janet Renee Cryer
http://chrisricecooper.blogspot.com/2019/07/119-backstory-of-poem-in-remembrance-of.html
“In Remembrance of Them”
by Janet Renee Cryer
http://chrisricecooper.blogspot.com/2019/07/119-backstory-of-poem-in-remembrance-of.html
