What happens when you take the time to see everyday things from a different point-of-view?
And what would happen if the ordinary became the means for change when used as a writing prompt? And, further, what if these prompts were made available to each of the quarter million residents in a given community? Could real social change begin to happen when these writings became poems and the poems are turned into a book, and the book was widely read at open mics?
These questions were the premise of this anthology's purpose to create a climate of tolerance, engagement, and acceptance for all Erie County residents. The intention was to take objects, like an image of statue made from upcycled industrial parts that became a horse hauling a globe named Fruits of Labor and use it in a writing workshop to ponder our parents' and grandparents' roles in creating our Great Lakes' city of Erie, Pennsylvania. It is a rustbelt-in-recovery city that was thrust into the media as a pivotal swing state during the recent election. The county's red vote threw the city's traditionally blue vote pitting family members against each other. Then, the division intensified from the negative media focus on why it occurred instead of how to heal.
From Paul Simon who credits his high school Kodachrome with giving "us the greens of summers" to Annie Dillard "knocked breathless by a powerful glance" at a backyard cedar, writers and photographers have used captured images as keys to spiritual awakening, both for themselves and for their readers and viewers.
This remarkable anthology, born out of love and place, captures the visual and emotional experiences of a unique community of artists around Erie, Pennsylvania and shares them with us. In many ways, this book is like a lake vacation between covers. Find it and find yourself transported through time, over water, into the inner lives of the artists who share themselves and their images with you here.
Judith Huge, co-author of 101 Ways You Can Help, a guide to grief
The late Dr. Wayne Dyer in his final book, I Can See Clearly Now, wrote: "When you change the way you look at things, the things you look at change." The 2016-2018 poet laureate, Marisa Moks-Unger, saw an opportunity to use the pop art, fine art, and photography of Erie County to provide a united front for all citizens in Erie County. And in doing so, provide a path for other communities to picture this: a country where all voices are heard and honored.
And everyone has a place called home.
