Landscape comes to life: Traverse City Record Eagle, Terry Wooten's Lifelines column

​Every October for more than fifteen years I’ve visited Boyne City Middle School for three days of poetry presentations and writing workshops. The sixth-grade Language Arts teacher, Dan Polleys, is a passionate believer in creativity and writing.
 
I’ve also attended quite a few football games in Boyne City. My sister’s son played on the Ramblers team that made it all the way to the semi-finals in the playoffs. 
 
 In all my visits I had never noticed the modest little vanilla colored house located between the high school and football field. Helen Anzell lived there. She recently participated in my East Jordan Elders Project that took place at Grandvue Medical Care Facility.
 
Helen was interviewed by two eighth-grade girls, Molly Kitson and Madilyn Cochran. They transcribed two sections of the tape and wrote two free verse poems in Helen’s words. I transcribed the rest of the tape and wrote the poem “Our House”, along with a few others.
 
I’m always amazed at how much more alive the local landscape becomes after listening to the community elders tell their stories entwined with the region. I’ll never again drive through any village that’s hosted an Elders Project without seeing the area more vividly. “Our House” is a perfect example of this.
 
Helen told the two girls that when they started building the football field beside her house, she walked across her yard to the site and asked, “What can I do to help?” The boss said, “Pick rocks.” So she picked up rocks and dumped them in her spare time.
 
Helen grew up on a farm between East Jordan and Boyne City, and worked hard all her life. She milked five cows by hand before and after school, and picked string beans with her three older sisters all through the growing season.
 
 These days she tries to stay busy riding the exercise bike. In the summer Grandvue lets her tend their flower gardens, because according to Helen, “I couldn’t stand the way they were taking care of them.”  My latest Elders Project was sponsored by the Jordan River Arts Council.
 
Meanwhile back at Boyne City Middle School, and my “Talking to Write” workshop. The last two poems of my column were written by two of Dan Polley’s sixth-grade students.
 
Helen Anzell
Our House
 
If you’re going out of Boyne City
where the football field is,
there’s one house
between the new high school
and the field.
That’s where we lived
and raised our family.
 
I met my future husband on a blind date.
Alfred was his name,
but he went by Al.
 
After we were married
he built our home by himself.
We didn’t have electricity.
All the tools he used were manual.
 
It took us ten years and four children
to finish our home.
We lived in the basement.
 
I’m very proud of it.
We never borrowed money.
With a part of every paycheck
Al bought some material.
He worked on our house at night,
on weekends and vacations.
 
I was his handyman.
He had me hold all the boards
for sawing.
I’m surprised I have any arms left.
 
When our fourth child was a year old,
my husband said,
“I don’t want to toilet train another baby
in the outhouse.”
 
We finished our home
so we had an indoor bathroom.
Then had two more children,
twin boys.
 
 
Daniel Wilson
A Tree
 
A tree once made a mistake
of overhanging Grandpa’s house,
like a deadly yo-yo.
 
Grandpa said, “That monstrosity has got to go!”
 
My brother cried
and bawled like a cat,
but Grandpa’s mind was set.
With a crack like an artillery cannon,
the deed was done.
Grandpa smiled and said,“Bonfire tonight.”
 
 
Shyla Green
The Dock
 
Water looks like millions
Of tiny crystals
They dance around us
 
We had
Brought our goggles today
 
Swam to the bottom
Like sinking rocks
 
The sun was falling apart
Like broken glass
 
I live by a dock
 
Night would come
The water turned black like ink
The sky was overwhelmed
With stars
 
The moon sat steadily in the sky
Waved around in
The dark lake
 
Cold water would splash on our faces
Make us laugh and smile
 
We will be back again tomorrow