Poet, Mentor, Leader, Bobcat
Alumna Kari Gunter-Seymour holds Athens and Appalachia close to her heart.
Laura M. Andr矇 | October 7, 2022
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Two-time OHIO graduate Kari Gunter-Seymour released her second book of poems this fall. Photo by Meagan Hall.
Each year the 窪蹋勛圖 Press and its literary imprint, Swallow Press, publish around 40 titles, but its rare when a books author and subject are as close to home as they are with Kari Gunter-Seymours second book of poems, .
, BFA 94, MA 16, hails from a family rooted nine generations deep in Appalachia. Hers is the third generation to call Athens County home. Her award-winning poetry sings of local culture, family and community.
Currently in her second term as Ohios poet laureate, Gunter-Seymour is the author or editor of several books and has won numerous awards and fellowships. Her photographs have garnered nationwide acclaim, too.
Gunter-Seymour gives back as a community leader. She is the founder and executive director of the , founder and host of the Spoken & Heard series at , and she helms writing workshops for incarcerated people and for those in recovery.
Her generosity shows in a poem from her latest book. Its details might sound familiar to those who have called Athens home:
The Whole Shebang Up for Debate
Today I gave a guy a ride,
caught in a cloudburst
jogging down East Mill Street.
Skinny, backpacked, newspaper
a makeshift shield, unsafe
under any circumstances.
I dont know what possessed me.
I make bad decisions, am forgetful,
cling to structure and routine
like static electricity to polyester,
a predicament of living under
the facade I always add to myself.
Said he needed to catch a GoBus,
shaking off droplets before climbing in.
He gabbed about Thanksgiving plans,
his moms cider basted turkey,
grandmas pecan crusted pumpkin pie.
It was a quick masked ride.
Bless you, he said, unfolding himself
from the car. No awkward goodbyes,
no what do I owe you? Just Bless you
and a backward wave.
At the stop sign, my fingers stroked
the dampness where he sat minutes before.
Sometimes life embraces you
so unconditionally, it shifts
your body from shadow
into a full flung lotus of light.
Laura M. Andr矇 is the publicity coordinator at the 窪蹋勛圖 Press.
Image courtesy of the 窪蹋勛圖 Press.