The Apostrophe Blog
A few months back, I entered several poems in several categories of the Fall 2025 Adult Contest of the Oregon Poetry Association. One of the categories this time was called Extended Prompt. The rules specified that the entry be only one page and one poem maximum in any form following the prompt, “Turning Point.” The judge, Richard Tillinghast, provided some additional guidance: “Write a poem about a turning point in your life, a landmark event or life-choice. Something—good or bad—has happened that changes everything.”
As an example, he posted the following poem by Han-Shan, a Tang Dynasty hermit poet, translated by Gary Snyder.
Settled at Cold Mountain
by Han-shan
I settled at Cold Mountain long ago,
Already it seems like years and years.
Freely drifting, I prowl the woods and streams
And linger watching things themselves.
Men don’t get this far into the mountains,
White clouds gather and billow
Thin grass does for a mattress,
The blue sky makes a good quilt.
Happy with a stone underhead
Let heaven and earth go about their changes.
I just learned today that I was received 1st Honorable Mention for “A Long Way Around” in this Extended Prompt category. My poem is a golden shovel based on the poem, “Release,” by A.R. Ammons. As far as how it addresses the prompt? I think the turning point that my poem speaks to is contained in its opening lines—
I was the one who sought after
a pollen of essence—the gist, the pith, a
pilgrimage to find meaning even if it took the long
and imperiled way around…
This poem has just been accepted for publication in American Writers Review from San Fedele Press in Fall 2025.
The public domain image above was taken at the Dartmouth Electron Microscope Facility at Dartmouth College in New Hampshire. Its image is magnified some 500X and includes pollen from a variety of common plants including sunflower, morning glory, hollyhock, lily, primrose, and castor bean.
Interests: Reading, writing, not arithmetic. The art and craft of poetry. Photography. Vegetable and flower gardening especially heirloom bulbs and dahlias. Movies in real theatres. Theatre on real stages. Art in real galleries. Crossword puzzles and, of course, Wordle. Singer-songwriters like Aimee Mann and Patti Griffin. All kinds of music especially 1930s jazz. Venice, Italy! The Dude abides.
- Publication News: Burn It Down! - October 20, 2025
- We Are All Frog… - October 19, 2025
- Greetings from War-Ravaged Portland! - October 5, 2025
