Lansing’s poet laureate is acting on her mission to bring poetry to the masses.
Suban Nur Cooley is making public appearances and touting events featuring other talented local poets this fall.
That includes leading a poetry workshop at the Capital Area District Libraries South Lansing branch Saturday, October 31 at 2 p.m.
On November 18, she’ll be at The Poetry Gallery in Michigan State University's Broad Art Museum, starting at 7 p.m.
For Inside The Arts this week, WKAR’s Scott Pohl brings Cooley back to the studios to catch up and to hear a new poem.
UPCOMING EVENTS
Jon Lehrer and Alison Dobbins perform a Carillon Halloween Concert at Michigan State University's Beaumont Tower Thursday, October 29 starting at 8 p.m.
On Friday, October 30 Candlelight Concerts presents two programs. The first, “A Haunted Evening of Halloween Classics," starts at 6:30 p.m. and the second, a tribute to Michael Jackson’s music, is at 8:45 p.m. Both are at Central United Methodist Church in Lansing.
The STA Organ Series at. St. Thomas Aquinas Church in East Lansing will feature Adrian Sanchez on baritone next Tuesday, November 3 starting at 7 p.m.
Interview Transcript
Scott Pohl: With Inside the Arts, I'm Scott Pohl. Lansing’s poet laureate is acting on her mission to bring poetry to the masses. Suban Nur Cooley is making public appearances and touting events featuring other talented local poets this fall. For Inside The Arts this week, I bring Cooley back to our studios to catch and to hear a new poem.
Suban Nur Cooley, welcome back!
Suban Nur Cooley: Thank you, Scott. How are you?
Pohl: I'm fine. Good to see you.
Nur Cooley: Good to be seen.
Pohl: I wanted to begin by just mentioning that it was important to you the last time we spoke, that as poet laureate of Lansing, you get out there and do poetry in public, and invite others to be there to consume your poetry, but also to perform. You have indeed been out there a lot, and have more planned, don't you?
Nur Cooley: Absolutely. I think, again, the goal of the laureate position is to get people excited about poetry. People who have never come across poetry, which feels like that's nobody, but you know what I mean? To engage in poetry and for people who've never even written it to explore what that can do for them. So, I have been fortunate to host workshops already, do some readings, and I have many more upcoming. So, there will be a lot of opportunities in the Lansing area to engage in poetry, and beyond me too, there are previous laureates who are also out there doing amazing work
Pohl: And in nontraditional locations, that's part of what I like your about your approach.
Nur Cooley: Yes, we will be in green houses, wineries, coffee shops. You know, the whole concept of pop-up poetry was to kind of have poetry pop up on you instead of, you know, those who know where to find poetry, know where to go.
Pohl: Coffee shops are maybe kind of expected.
Nur Cooley:, That’s true. That's trope-y though now, you know? It's almost, I feel like I blame…this is dating me…but do you remember, it was a movie with Mike Myers, and he does a spoken word piece…Oh, gosh, “How I Married An Ax Murderer"?
Pohl: Oh, my!
Nur Cooley: I know, a long time ago, but it was, there's a whole scene in there and yeah, he starts up a poem and again, there's lots of poetry, poetry tropes.
Pohl: Go watch the movie.
Nur Cooley: Yes, go watch it, it's great.
Scott Pohl: Okay. You've brought me a poem today?
Nur Cooley: I have.
Pohl: What's it called?
Nur Cooley: Okay. It's “Three People Waiting For Their Luggage”.
Pohl: Here’s Suban Nur Cooley.
Three People Waiting for Their Luggage
At baggage claim
we become believers.
Three of us
stand before the belt
watching other people's
possessions circle back to them.
A blue Samsonite.
Golf clubs.
A stroller with no baby.
One enormous suitcase wrapped entirely
in plastic,
which feels like either wisdom
or prophecy.
The man beside me leans forward
each time a black suitcase appears.
So do I.
We have apparently all purchased
the same luggage.
Across the carousel, a woman sees hers
and her whole body changes.
There you are.
She does not say this,
but I hear it.
I know something about waiting
for what belongs to you
to arrive from elsewhere.
My family has made an art of this.
People arriving years after people.
Photographs before bodies.
Names crossing borders
before mouths
could answer to them.
But tonight I am too tired
to make an airport
carry all of that.
I want my suitcase.
My underwear.
My good shoes.
The dress I should have packed
in my carry-on.
Around and around the belt goes.
Three strangers watching the dark opening from which, eventually, something we recognize will come.
Inherently alike but ours.
Pohl: Always great to see you!
Nur Cooley: Great to be seen! Thank you, Scott.
Pohl: Suban Nur Cooley is Lansing's poet laureate.
With Inside The Arts, I'm Scott Pohl.
Suban Nur Cooley will lead a poetry workshop at the Capital Area District Library South Lansing branch Saturday at 2 p.m.
On November 18, she’ll be at The Poetry Gallery in MSU's Broad Art Museum, starting at 7 p.m.
