In memory of my friend and teacher, Paul Crudden
The Editors and Web Master of The Heron's Nest just announced "the results of the Readers' Choice Awards for favorite poems and poets featured in Volume XIII, 2011...We published poems by 250 poets during 2011 and the average total points for combined works this year was 15."
I received the following two awards:
1 Grand Prize: POEM OF THE YEAR (13 nominations, totaling 89 points)
a deceased friend
taps me on the shoulder -
plum blossoms falling
(anthologized in Nest Feathers: Selected Haiku from the first 15 years of The Heron’s Nest, 2015)
2 First Runner-up as Poet of the Year
(17 nominations, naming 3 of 3 poems published = 110 points)
The Editors and Web Master of The Heron's Nest just announced "the results of the Readers' Choice Awards for favorite poems and poets featured in Volume XIII, 2011...We published poems by 250 poets during 2011 and the average total points for combined works this year was 15."
I received the following two awards:
1 Grand Prize: POEM OF THE YEAR (13 nominations, totaling 89 points)
a deceased friend
taps me on the shoulder -
plum blossoms falling
(anthologized in Nest Feathers: Selected Haiku from the first 15 years of The Heron’s Nest, 2015)
2 First Runner-up as Poet of the Year
(17 nominations, naming 3 of 3 poems published = 110 points)
I was told by my editor, Fay Aoyagi, that The Heron's Nest doesn't print “dedication" except for the special section; therefore "for Paul Crudden" was omitted.
Eight years ago, I met Paul at a long-term care center as a Friendly Visitor. His illness made him speak with difficulty, but it didn’t stop him from conversing. He constantly told me that “Chen-ou, don’t worry about your English. Both of us have speaking problems, but many people around us have listening problems.”
Paul's acceptance and encouragement made the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms relevant to me. He passed away on Oct., 30, 2005. Two years later, I received my Canadian citizenship.
