Saturday Night Genealogy Fun: Your "Where I'm From" Poem

Today for Saturday Night Genealogy Fun, Randy decided to revisit a previous theme.

Your mission, should you decide to accept it (cue the Mission:  Impossible! music here), is to:

(1) Write your own "Where I'm From" poem — you can see a sample format at http://www.swva.net/fred1st/wif.htm.  But make it unique — yours!

(2) Share your poem on your own blog post, in a comment to this post, or on Facebook.  Be sure to leave a comment with a link to your poem.

Here's mine.

Where Is Janice From?

I am from constantly moving freeways, from slow country roads,
From skyscrapers and apartment buildings, from small churches and family homes.

I am from too many homes to remember,
From the city and the suburbs and the country.
From Southern California and Sydney and Florida,
From behind the sausage factory and from the trailer park.
From trees and trellises and bookshelves to climb,
From swimming pools and bayous to swim in.

I am from sagebrush and oleander, from honeysuckle and raspberry bushes,
From manicured lawns and rose bushes, from kudzu and live oaks.
From dogs and cats and gerbils as pets,
From cottonmouths and ground-dwelling hornets to avoid.

I am from Sellers and Meckler and Gauntt and Brainin,
From Armstrong and Dunstan and Nowicki and Gordon,
From Lippincott and Wynn and Yelsky and Blum.
From tall and short and thin and fat,
From misers and spendthrifts, frugal and gamblers,
From cheerful and dour and friendly and aloof.

I am from college and books, from mechanics and taxi drivers,
From bookkeepers and cashiers, from dressmakers and farmers.
From "You can do anything you want to do" to
"Why aren't you married and where is my granddaughter?"

I am from Lancashire and Baden, from Grodno and Podolsky,
From Cornwall and Courland, and maybe border rievers,
But not from John of Gaunt or Peter Sellers.
I am from La Puente and Pagewood, from Niceville and Villa Tasso,
From Los Angeles and Berkeley and Oakland.
I am from California, from New Jersey, from New York,
From delis and chili, from take-out Chinese and ham for Easter.

I am from Jews and Catholics, from Chanukah and Christmas,
From Quakers and Dunkers, from Lutherans and Separatists.
From a fervent Quaker witnessing from her knees,
From a cremated Jew who attended Midnight Mass.

I am from the Mayflower, from 20th-century immigration,
From the Depression and from the Holocaust.
From the free-wheeling West Coast, the intellectual East Coast,
And a little bit of hick from the South.

I am from photographs and jewelry and yarmulkes and silverware,
From dishes and menorahs and crocheted cups saved and treasured.
From family names remembered through the years
And reborn in the lives of descendants.

A New "Where I'm From" Poetry Project

George Ella Lyon, the 2015–2016 Kentucky State Poet Laureate, wrote the original "Where I'm From" poem in 1993 after being inspired by a poem in Stories I Ain't Told Nobody Yet.  The idea is to write about the people, places, and things that have influenced you and your life.  As a writing exercise, the idea has continued to inspire others and has been used around the world.  Lyon has said, "Its life beyond my notebook is a testimony to the power of poetry, of roots, and of teachers."

For Saturday Night Genealogy Fun one week in November 2015, Randy Seaver suggested his readers write a poem for the "Where I'm From" contest being held by Lisa Louise Cooke of Genealogy Gems.  I wrote a poem and posted it on my blog.  I also submitted it to the Genealogy Gems contest (and won a premium subscription).

The exercise of writing a "Where I'm From" poem is still popular with many genealogical societies.  The Santa Clara County (California) Historical and Genealogical Society (SCCHGS) currently has its own project for would-be poets and would love to hear from more people.  It isn't really a contest, as the poems will not be judged.  Everyone who submits a poem will receive a small gift and have their names put into a drawing for prizes, which include cash and a year's subscription to MyHeritage.com.  Those who mention Santa Clara County by name or an identifiable landmark in Santa Clara County in their memory poems will be entered into an additional drawing.

If your interest has been piqued, more details about the project can be found here.  Drawings for prizes will take place at the SCCHGS meeting on October 18.  To be eligible for the drawings, you need to submit your poem by August 31, 2016.

Saturday Night Genealogy Fun: Your "Where I'm From" Poem

This was definitely a departure from the norm.  For Saturday Night Genealogy Fun, Randy Seaver suggested people participate in the "Where I'm From" poetry contest being conducted by Lisa Louise Cooke of Genealogy Gems:

1) Did you see Sunny Morton's post titled Write Your Own “Where I’m From” Poem and Enter to Win FREE Genealogy Gems Membership! (11 November 2015)?  You can win something on Genealogy Gems.

2)  Write your own "Where I'm From" poem and enter the contest.  You can see a sample format at http://www.swva.net/fred1st/wif.htm.

3)  Share your poem on your own blog post, in a comment to this post, or on Facebook or Google+.

I've never been one for poetry, but here's mine.

Where Is Janice From?

I am from constantly moving freeways, from slow country roads,
From skyscrapers and apartment buildings, from small churches and family homes.

I am from too many homes to remember,
From the city and the suburbs and the country.
From Southern California and Sydney and Florida,
From behind the sausage factory and from the trailer park.
From trees and trellises and bookshelves to climb,
From swimming pools and bayous to swim in.

I am from sagebrush and oleander, from honeysuckle and raspberry bushes,
From manicured lawns and rose bushes, from kudzu and live oaks.
From dogs and cats and gerbils as pets,
From cottonmouths and ground-dwelling hornets to avoid.

I am from Sellers and Meckler and Gauntt and Brainin,
From Armstrong and Dunstan and Nowicki and Gordon,
From Lippincott and Wynn and Yelsky and Blum.
From tall and short and thin and fat,
From misers and spendthrifts, frugal and gamblers,
From cheerful and dour and friendly and aloof.

I am from college and books, from mechanics and taxi drivers,
From bookkeepers and cashiers, from dressmakers and farmers.
From "You can do anything you want to do" to
"Why aren't you married and where is my granddaughter?"

I am from Lancashire and Baden, from Grodno and Podolsky,
From Cornwall and Courland, and maybe border rievers,
But not from John of Gaunt or Peter Sellers.
I am from La Puente and Pagewood, from Niceville and Villa Tasso,
From Los Angeles and Berkeley and Oakland.
I am from California, from New Jersey, from New York,
From delis and chili, from take-out Chinese and ham for Easter.

I am from Jews and Catholics, from Chanukah and Christmas,
From Quakers and Dunkers, from Lutherans and Separatists.
From a fervent Quaker witnessing from her knees,
From a cremated Jew who attended Midnight Mass.

I am from the Mayflower, from 20th-century immigration,
From the Depression and from the Holocaust.
From the free-wheeling West Coast, the intellectual East Coast,
And a little bit of hick from the South.

I am from photographs and jewelry and yarmulkes and silverware,
From dishes and menorahs and crocheted cups saved and treasured.
From family names remembered through the years
And reborn in the lives of descendants.