Chicago Poetry Center of Chicago’s 50th Year Comes and Goes

by Donald G. Evans

On Wednesday, June 18, I went to Haymarket House (800 W. Buena) for CPCC’s Summer Poetry Gathering. This was the final in a year-long series of programs to commemorate the organization's half-century of existence. It seems forever ago when I went to the Poetry Foundation for A Bigger Table: 50 Years of the Chicago Poetry Center. But that was almost a year ago, and this more recent night acted as the last float in this well-deserved parade.

Martin Espada was the featured reader, but before that B. Sampson introduced the Gwendolyn Brooks Award for Excellence in Teaching winners. Leslie Reese, Timothy David Rey, and Joy Young each received awards, and as part of their acceptance also read their own poetry. All three are excellent writers. This teaching award is an incredible way to recognize a profession that largely goes unnoticed (except by the students). We’re not in the classrooms with these teachers. We don’t know, really, what kinds of teachers they are. We tend to assume that the great writers are great teachers, but of course some great writers are blah teachers and some blah writers are great teachers. Some writers only teach because, hey, how else are we going to make any money? For the really good teachers, their classroom is a canvas—they work tirelessly on the preparation, they grind out the grading, they master the course material, they get to genuinely know their students, they figure out how to create an ideal environment in which everybody feels safe, emboldened, depended upon, and appreciated. They care. The thing about CPCC, it’s so hands on that B. and Marty McConnell and others know the teachers, are able to evaluate their power (or lack thereof), hear the student reactions, understand the work they’re putting in, and see the results. Teachers work in service of the students—that’s the way it should be—but I’m all for giving them their moment and just congratulations.

It was emotional for these recipients and heartening for those on hand to witness their achievements. Marty, as always, did a phenomenal job setting the stage for the Espada reading. She made you believe that Espada was wonderful and inspirational and rare, and then he came on stage and was wonderful and inspirational and rare. He's not only a world-class poet, but a gifted performer. Serious to funny to serious in the tilt of a head or the raise of an eyebrow.

There was free food and drink for all, and I won a silent auction that netted me a limited-edition, illustrated Carlos Cumpián poem. The poem is called, "The Circus," and the illustrator is Marcos Raya. It's number seven of 50; the clown drawing is perfect, as is the poem. I thought, weighing the impractical cost, "This will be good for the Poetry Center." I thought, after a glass of wine, "This will be good for me." I thought, once more, after a second glass of wine, "This will be good for the Poetry Center AND it will be good for me. This will be good for both of us." It's mine, now.

The Haymarket House would be a perfect place to just hang out, even if there were nothing happening there at the time. It's a lovely house and feels like a house, rather than an event space. It's right there off Marine Drive, with stunning views from the many big windows. But you cannot just go hang out there when nothing is happening, so getting inside the place for an event like this (or the regular CPCC Blue Hour readings) is a way to access its loveliness.

Donald G. Evans is the author of a novel and a short story collection, as well as editor of two Chicago anthologies. He is the Founding Executive Director of the Chicago Literary Hall of Fame.