My father, the son of immigrants, couldn't read to me
the way Miss Charlotte did. With her soft voice
and slightly graying hair gathered up in a loose
bun, she gathered me up into the words of stories,
the words of books. Luminous word of the fairy
tale: ragged witch, dancing princess, silver wolf.
Quiet word of the true story: mosaic of the world,
our country, ourselves. She convinced me

anything was possible. From the outstretched arms
of the spiral galaxy to the closed fist of a human heart.
Now I can discover the silent women in marble
and hear them speak in tones of white and mauve.
Now I can imagine the expanding soul of my father
intent on reading every word, every book possible.

Linda Nemec Foster received her B.A. from Aquinas College and her M.F.A. in creative writing from Goddard College in Vermont. She is the author of six collections of poetry: A History of the Body, A Modern Fairy Tale: The Baba Yaga Poems, Trying to Balance the heart, Living in the Fire Nest (a finalist for the Poet's Prize), Contemplating the Heavens, and Amber Necklace from Gdansk. The latter was published by Louisiana State University Press and was selected as a finalist for the Ohio Book Award in Poetry in 2003. Her poems have been published in over 250 magazines and journals in America and Europe and she is the recipient of numerous awards for her poetry from the Arts Foundation of Michigan, the Michigan Council for the Arts and Cultural Affairs, ArtServe Michigan, and the National Writer's Voice from New York City. In 2003, the Humanities Council at the Grand Rapids Public Library chose Foster to be the first poet laureate of Grand Rapids, Michigan. Her poem presented here, "Beginnings," was written to celebrate the grand re-opening of the newly renovated main library. It was the first poem she was commissioned to write as the city's poet laureate.

For more information on Linda Nemec Foster, go to www.lindanemecfoster.com.

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