Johanna Ely, a resident of Benicia for more than 30 years and former elementary school teacher, is the city’s newest poet laureate. (Courtesy photo)

(Dedicated to Joel Fallon)

You told me to always make
eye contact with my audience,
to blow up the print of my poems
to a font size of 14.
Never wear glasses, you advised,
or drink water while you read.
No distractions, you said.

You told me I wrote good poetry,
but that the word “crescent”
was an overused adjective
when describing the moon.
You asked me if we were still friends.
I said yes, and never used it again.

When you really liked one of my poems,
you’d proclaim, “Johanna, that poem is grand!”
And then I’d feel happy, and think of my poem
as a grand piano, or a grande dame,
something or someone old and respected,
a poem that might survive
beyond the topical moment,
elegant words stretched out
over octaves of time.

I listened closely to all your words of wisdom,
cherished the books of poetry you gave me to read,
carried my poems in a thin, black binder
so much like your own.

The small leather notebook
you had me keep in my purse
is filled with the starts and endings
of a dozen poems,
the names of a few good Mexican restaurants,
a recipe for curried chicken salad.
And then there is the title of the poem
I wrote down and wanted to read
after I found out you were gone.

I will always miss you.
I want you to know that I listened,
and have done almost everything
you thought I should do to become a decent poet.
Tomorrow, when I call you my mentor
and read one of your poems
out loud to the others who knew you,
I will do everything you suggested
except for one thing-
I won’t take off my glasses,
unless I start to cry.

Johanna Ely is Benicia’s current poet laureate

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