I’ve been working on a book of poetry and essay about the sweetness of growing up in East Texas in the 1960s. So far, the working title is, Upper East Side of The Pines. Afterall, I did grow up on the Upper East Side—oh, not New York, I’m talking about Texas!
This poem, cottonmouth is about a snake, called a water moccasin. It was in the process of dying when I arrived at my Grandmother’s house for a Sunday lunch in the 1980s. We had a spring-fed pond down in the meadow. It was rocky and covered with moss. As time passed, it wasn’t as well manicured as when I was a child. I spent a lot of hours at that pond as a kid. I would take my spelling books and early readers, and study words—tiny little frogs hopped all around at my feet. As the years passed, the meadow became over grown; the pond barely visible, became a den for cottonmouths and copperheads.
Listen to the poem, here on YouTube
Join Me, and Professor / Poet, Peter Hoheisel this Saturday
July 3rd, 2021, 8am – 9am on the radio. We will be reading poetry from the book, Twelve East Texas Poets—An Anthology. Tune in to the radio show, Art Connection East Texas with Neita Fran Ward as host, and Sandy Newton as co-host. on KTBB—Tyler, 92.1 FM or 1490 AM. Click here to LISTEN LIVE
Following the show, from 10:30am – 1:00pm, Peter and I will be in Neita Fran’s shop, Valerosa Designs & Gallery Located in Bergfeld Center, 108 East 8th Street, Tyler, Texas 75701, phone 903-504-5249. We will have copies of Twelve East Texas Poets—An Anthology available for purchase and autograph.
The book is also available on Amazon
…And In Other News
I have a new website for The Literary Catcast Podcast. We set it up for easy access to episodes. All you do is tap, Open This Episode, …then tap, The Play Arrow.
I received an email last week that the podcast was trending in New Zealand. It ranked number 237 in Fiction on Apple Podcasts.
Phebe lives in Dallas, for now…until she moves deep into the piney woods of East Texas into her home named Murder Mittens Ridge. Murder mittens is “CatSpeak” for cats that have claws. She and Mac live with seven cats. Phebe creates The Literary Catcast Podcast—dedicated to the preservation of vintage books and writings with cats as main characters, bringing their awareness into the modern form of a podcast.
“Remember, if given the opportunity, help the little things.” ~Phebe
I enjoyed the poem, Cottonmouth, Phebe. It reminded me of growing up in central Florida in the 50s and early 60s. The water moccasins and rattlesnakes were all around then. Not so much anymore. So many people now.
Hi George,
Thank you for this comment. I think East Texas and Florida have a lot in common. Cottonmouth was a fun poem to read.
With friendship,
Phebe