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Bill Stafford, Friendship and the Scottish Poetry Library

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Bill Stafford, Friendship and the Scottish Poetry Library A Newsletter For Poets & Poetry Volume 8, Issue 4 – December 2003 Bill Stafford, Friendship and the Scottish Poetry Library By Hermon Joyner and Sulima Malzin, with Don and Betty Balmer Why I Keep A Diary While I follow the wind The smell of scones and good strong tea drifted There is no wind. Because through the cozy apartment in Edinburgh. The my wings are silent. I follow weather, unpredictable at best, was refreshingly the cost and find these pines mild in Scotland this past September. At that wrapped in their wind, those old believers moment, Don and Betty Balmer were sitting in the And I know that I am alive apartment of Tessa Ransford, a long-time friend of and this is the world’s trail theirs. Vigorous, warm, and full of life, Tessa’s a day, a day, a day eyes still held the same penetrating intelligence much on its own track. and sparkling sense of humor that the Balmers BOARD OF TRUSTEES: Where did the others go? first saw more than 30 years ago. Her ruddy Chair: Joseph Soldati, Port l a n d cheeks framed a quiet smile, as she lifted the Nan Atz en, Newb e r g Pacemaker sun, persuader, teapot and poured them all another cup. They sat Elizabeth Bar ton, Van c o u ve r and heart that wants to beat back, sipped their tea and let their thoughts return Patricia Carver , Lake Oswe g o (and then the soul’s one stride): to that first meeting. Don Colburn, Port l a n d my destiny is to find Mar tha Gatchell, Dra i n this coast I follow. Don and Betty Balmer first visited Scotland in Sulima Malzin, Por tland * For Sandy on July 16,1974 1971, when they brought a group of students from Paulann Petersen, Port l a n d because he asked on July 15 Lewis and Clark College, where Don taught Shelley Reece, Port l a n d Political Science from 1951 until his retirement in Dennis Schmidling, Tua l a t i n 2002. The program offered two terms of Scottish Helen Schmidling, Tua l a t i n History and Geography taught by faculty from the Ann Sta l e y , Port l a n d University of Edinburgh. This opened the door to check it out, and there they met the library’s Rich Wan d s c h n e i d e r , Ent e r p r i s e a number of long-term friendships for the Balmers. founder and director, Tessa Ransford. Nancy Win k l e s k y , Oregon City Patty Wix on, Ashland The beauty and age of the Scottish surroundings Tessa, a respected and published poet in Scotland, were captivating to the Balmers and their students. introduced herself and explained the SPL’s primary NATIONAL ADVISORS: The walk down Edinburgh’s Royal Mile objective, which is to promote the cre- Marvin Bell stretches from its formidable castle, ation, preservation, appreciation, and Robert Bly with parts dating back to the distribution of Scottish poetry. Al l Kurt Brown 1200s, to the stately palace of of the shelves in the cramped, but Lucille Clifton Holyrood, once the residence of cozy library were filled with James DePreist Mary, Queen of Scots. books of poetry, not only Donald Hall Piercing the 12-story rows of Scottish, but from around the Maxine Kumin gray stone buildings are world, as well. Frequent poet- Li-Young Lee entryways, or closes, leading ry readings were held in the Ursula K. LeGuin to hidden courtyards. One courtyard, weather permitting. Chris Merrill such close was labeled Sc o t l a n d ’ s climate is much W.S. Merwin Tweeddale Court. Intrigued by like the Northwest, minus the Naomi Shihab Nye the quaint title, the Balmers summer heat. Gary Snyder found a small stone structure identified as the Scottish Poetry The Balmers brought their stu- Library (SPL). Since they were dents to several such events, and friends with one good poet, William learned that the poets reading at SPL Stafford, the Balmers decided to Tessa Ransford and Betty Balmer Continued on Page 2 Friends of William Stafford is a non-profit organization dedicated to raising awareness of poetry and literature, using the legacy, life and works of the late award-winning Oregon poet William Stafford. 2 Scottish Poetry Library … Back in Tessa’s apartment, time has slipped by. The cups of tea have been replaced by glasses of smoky Scottish whiskey. The Continued from Page 1 rich flavor provides a soothing counterpoint to the falling tempera- were often inspiring people who earned their livings as skilled tu r e s outside, bracing the Balmers for their walk back to the stonemasons or carpenters, but lived their lives as poets. Crosbies’ home. As on all their visits to Scotland, Don and Betty are nurtured by the camaraderie of their many friends and by the The SPL is both a lending library and research center. It encour- beauty of the country. They are bolstered by the connection they ages writing in Gaelic and Scots languages, as well as English, have created between an Oregon poet and a faraway library. and publishes reciprocal translations of Eastern European and Scotland continues to call, and the Balmers continue to answer. Scottish poetry. It also sends staff and bookmobiles to outlying communities and schools without libraries of their own, and *Editor’s Note: In 1974 Sandy Crosbie taught at Lewis and encourages interest in contemporary poets, such as Hugh Clark College while on sabbatical from the University of MacDiarmid. There are nine branches throughout Scotland. Edinburgh. In one of his conversations with Bill Stafford he asked him why he kept a diary. The poem, “Why I Keep a Since their first visit, the Balmers have returned to Scotland Diary,” was Bill’s response. It is a gift that Dr. Crosbie has kept almost every other year. While visiting, Betty and Don usually framed above his desk for almost 30 years, a memento of that stay with friends, like Dr. A.J. “Sandy” Crosbie and his wife, time and of their friendship. The poem eventually became “Why Nicola, who are members of FWS. Sandy, a University of I Keep A Journal,” but was published as “Diary” in American Edinburgh geographer, had arranged for several of the Lewis and Scholar in 1975 and again in a limited edition called Seeking Clark College programs in Scotland. At the end of their first The Way, in 1992. Used with permission from the Estate of visit, the Balmers presented him a copy of Traveling Through William Stafford. The Dark, which had been signed by all the students. Seeing the book again this summer, Betty says, brought tears to her eyes. Over the years, they have donated other Stafford books, includ- ing A Message From Oregon, to the SPL international collection. In the 1980s, Don and Betty visited with Dorothy and Bill Stafford in Scotland, after the Staffords had finished touring Don Balmer remembers Hideo Hashimoto Europe with the U.S. Information Agency. The Balmers intro- duced them to Tessa Ransford, who graciously gave the Hideo Hashimoto, long time peace activist and Lewis and Clark Staffords a personal tour of the library. Quiet as usual, Bill was faculty colleague of William Stafford, died last June at the age of nonetheless pleased and honored to be included in the library’s 92. A Methodist minister, he served the Japanese interned at a collection. camp in Arkansas during World War II, and lost two family members in the atomic bomb blast at Hiroshima. Over the years, the small library in Tweeddale’s Court has grown into an important institution for Scottish poetry, and poetry in Hideo’s affiliations included the Fellowship of Reconciliation, general. The SPL has been able to secure various grants for American Friends Service Committee, and many similar pacifist innovative programs and the construction of a new, larger build- organizations. He was a frequent spokesperson at peace rallies ing. The new library, an architectural award winner, is now and joined in many efforts to achieve disarmament and to limit located in Crichton’s Close near the nearly completed Scottish atomic weapons and their testing. Parliament. It is a strategic location that promises a great future for the library. Hideo and Bill were of the same mind on many important issues and appeared on the same platform a number of times. Bill often Tessa Ransford retired several years ago as the director of SPL. said that Hideo was the “token Japanese” and he was the “token She was awarded an OBE (Order of the British Empire) for her poet.” Would that we had more like him! contributions to poetry in Scotland, and received an honorary degree from Paisley University in Glasgow. SPL’s current direc- Editor’s Note: Don Balmer is Professor Emeritus of Political tor, Robyn Marsak, is now leading the library forward. Science, Lewis and Clark College. According to Betty, the library welcomes visitors and would appreciate more William Stafford publications. You can find out more about the SPL and their current happenings on their web site at www.spl.org.uk. FRIENDS OF W I L L I A M S T A F F O R D 3 FWS Newest Lifetime Member is a Winner By Sulima Malzin in the fall. David’s poem “Rendevous In The Desert With Bill Stafford,” grew out David Hedges is important to Oregon of that conversation. In 1997, it was poetry. In fact, his involvement in given First Prize in the Perryman-Visser Oregon’s literary arts community goes National Poetry Awards.
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