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Appalachia Bare Gettin’ Down & Dirty
Interview and Tour with Wayne Mason, University of Tennessee Composting Supervisor
Anna Laura Reeve’s Debut Poetry Collection: Reaching the Shore of the Sea of Fertility
by Guest Reviewer Amber Albritton
----------MAY HISTORY---------- May 1, 1982 World’s Fair opens in Knoxville, Tennessee . . . May 5, 1865 - Decoration Day was first observed in the U.S., decorating Civil War soldiers’ graves with flowers. The observance date later moved to May 30th and became Memorial Day to observe all American veterans who sacrificed their lives . . . May 17, 1954 - In Brown v. Board of Education, the U.S. Supreme Court unanimously ruled that separate schools are fundamentally unequal. Thurgood Marshall argued the case before the Court, and later became the first African American Supreme Court justice . . . May 21, 1881 American Red Cross founded . . . May 25, 1925 High school science teacher John T. Scopes was charged with the crime of teaching the theory of evolution. Tennessee state law prohibited teaching evolution in public schools . . . May 25, 1935 Jesse Owens broke three world records at the Big Ten meet: broad jump, 220-yard dash and low hurdles . . . May 31, 1889 – Flooding in Johnstown, Pennsylvania killed over 2,300 people. The Conemaugh River Dam burst due to heavy rains that month and caused a wall of water 75 feet high to flow on the city . . . ----------THIS MONTH IS---------- May 8 is No Socks Day . . . May 10 is Root Canal Appreciation Day . . . May 14 is Mother’s Day . . . May 20 is Armed Forces Day . . . May 29 is Memorial Day . . . ----------FAMOUS APPALACHIAN MAY BIRTHDAYS---------- Sterling A. Brown, Rudolph Fisher, Robert E. Peary, Nellie Bly, Martha Graham . . . ----------CONFERENCES, CONTESTS, AND RETREATS---------- . . . Asian American Voices: An In-Community Retreat. May 4–7, 2023: Honesdale, PA. www.highlightsfoundation.org . . . Pennwriters Conference. May 19–21, 2023: Pittsburgh, PA. pennwriters.org . . . Oak Spring Garden Foundation – 2024 Eliza Moore Fellowship for Artistic Excellence --awarded to an early career artist. Projects must focus on plants, landscapes, or gardens. Winners will receive a $10,000 grant and a 2-5 week stay at OSGF in Northern VA. Deadline: May 31, 2023 osgf.org . . . Andy Warhol Foundation – Arts Writers Grant – winners will receive from $15,000 to $50,000 in three categories: articles, books, and short-form writing. Deadline: May 17, 2023 artswriters.org . . .
“Defining Appalachian culture is often a top-down process, in which individuals with power or capital tell us who or what we are.”
― Elizabeth Catte, What You Are Getting Wrong About Appalachia
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“Moments”
By: appalachiabare
Sunlight touches my face at dawn A butterfly lands on my hand Bees kiss wildflowers on the lawn Crimson cardinals present their demands The last glow of sunset reveals a doe and fawn Fireflies twinkle in dewy evening starlight Crickets and bullfrogs sing their soulful tune Moon-eyed owl keeps vigil in darkest night Witnessing myriad moments of nocturnal bloom And