Our neighborhood is home to a scattering of poetry posts, those delightful eye-level literary display boxes offered to anyone ambling by who needs a brief respite to ponder some thought-provoking, heart-stirring lines. An unexpected urban gift, these are poems liberated from the page and parked on the street — just for you, passerby!
Here’s a sample of places to find poetry posts in B-W:
South of Fremont
In an order that might make for a pleasant loop walk:
Start at the corner of NE Beakey and 33rd Place, in front of one of the most charming hobbit-like homes in our neighborhood.
Head east. On the corner of NE 35th and Klickitat, find a post crafted of metal to look like bamboo, tucked away behind a book box.
Go a stone’s throw east to find the post on NE Klickitat between 36th and 37th.
Walk east and downhill, and check out the post on NE 38th between Wistaria and Stanton.
Turn left — eastward — on NE Stanton, and check out the poetry box nailed to a tree a few houses past Cesar Chavez Blvd.
Even farther east, at the wide intersection of NE 43rd and Wistaria Drive, look for the house with a white picket fence on the corner.
Keep traipsing along NE Wistaria Drive and locate the post a few steps up the hill from 47th.
Heading uphill, hike to NE 47th between Siskiyou and Stanton.
Back to the ridge, check out the post on NE Alameda next to Wiberg Lane.
Finish up on NE Beaumont Street, the short block leading down to the sweeping 41st Avenue curve, where there’s a book box with a poem often on its cover.
North of Fremont
Scan the post on NE 38th between Shaver and Skidmore.
Interested in having your own? A pioneering Portland poetry box crafter is David Cooke, whose workshop is in nearby Woodlawn. Check out his website at poetryboxes.com.
BWNA board member Tim Gillespie was a public school teacher in the Portland area for almost four decades.