Poetry workshop

Speaking of the arts, I have had the absolute privilege to work with some of my fellow classmates and the former Kentucky Poet Laureate, Richard Taylor in a poetry workshop this semester!
I know I have mentioned before how tough it can be to keep up with creative writing in college, because analytical writing receives most of the emphasis, but Transy has had the honor of having Richard Taylor on our campus for a few years now as our writer in residence, and he has played a major role in allowing creative writing students on this campus to keep up with their writing.

Dr. Richard Taylor!

Transy has no official creative writing program, but more and more creative classes are being offered now. And boy is there talent here! My classmates have often left me gaping with awe after reading their work, and my own work has improved immensely since beginning the workshop.
We have not only gotten to work with and learn from Richard and each other, but we have also had the pleasure of having numerous guests in our classes, well-known and successful KY poets like Kathleen Driskell, Katerina Stoykova-Klemer, and Jeff Worley
Here’s one of the poems I have written since beginning the class:

Language Barrier

We have just landed in Beijing after 24 hours.
Across the aisle, my classmate,
Who has endured 14 silent
Hours next to a native’s pungent
Snacks of dried fish and boiled eggs,
His newspaper filled with indistinguishable
Glyphs, is fumbling
Her suitcase from the overhead bin,
When, as if carried by some ancient
Impulse, her neighbor places a stabilizing hand
On her back, saves
The toppling bag, and, cradling it,
As an infant, perhaps, of their own creation,
Settles it in her arms.

She would later tell me
She had said
‘thank you,’ but
I remember only her lingering
Hand on his forearm, his slow, smiling
Bow, as they parted
Less foreign
Than either had imagined.

By: Amanda Holt