rafting Follow

Mara’s introduction for Hollins University writing teacher Thorpe Moeckel at the Café Del Sol was so well crafted and delivered that Thorpe thought maybe he shouldn’t read any poetry, after all. Her words were a hard act to follow. But follow them he did, taking us listeners on a ride through Alaska, Maine, and North Carolina, where we met his grandfather, father, a pecan farmer, some kids who were court ordered to take one of his rafting trips, and more. I was intrigued by a man who has been published in Orion and Mothering, and was touched when he said that he reads better when his wife is in the audience. His passion for river rafting and words converged in a way that made me want to go home and write poetry, or never write it again. I laughed, got some emotionally charged goose bumps, and sometimes just drifted in the tide of his words, hanging my arm over the side of the Café Del Sol's comfy couch. After the reading, Thorpe -- a thoroughly likable guy who almost moved to Floyd once -- signed books and answered questions. “How do you teach poetry?” my friend Jayn asked him. I think he answered something related to rafting, something about going with the flow. Mike Mitchell (left) who teaches fiddle at the Floyd Country Store left the lights on in his car all day. And so it was an unlikely ending to a poetry reading. Everyone left charged up. Post Notes: Thorpe’s books Making a Map of the River and Odd Botany can be purchased on Amazon HERE and HERE. Scroll down HERE for more Spoken Word posts. The third photo of Alli C and Mara was taken by Tracey Ann because I wasn't tall enough to score the shot.