Tuesday, July 6th at 7 p.m.

Benicia's third poet laureate, Ronna Leon, will be hosting this evening's First Tuesday poetry program.

Here's a short biography and one of her poems. Come out and welcome her!

Poet, artist, photographer Ronna Leon has lived in Benicia since 1983.  With her husband Joe Leon, she owns and operates Caterpillar Puppets.  Ronna creates the puppets, and is an accomplished artist and photographer who has had a show at the Benicia Public Library gallery.  Ronna has a history of advocacy for poetry. She worked on the state Poets Laureate Project by taking pictures of more than 60 past and present poets laureate in CA and creating the web site for the project.  She is a member of the First Tuesday group in Benica, and the Ina Coolbrith Poetry Circle, and she reads at Valona Deli in Crocket monthly.

She said in her <Poet Laureate> application:

My poetry is informal and personal.  In it I express as clearly and concisely as possible my intuitive understanding of the world.  I am drawn to problems of conscience, the soul and everyday emotions.  My goal is to communicate what I see and feel in an interesting and lively way.

NEWSPAPER I hear the thwack that signals its arrival On my Driveway. I do not rise.  Do not hurry, as is my habit,  To spread wide the soft pages like a proud bird Upon my table. Do not make the dark coffee that usually flavers The mysteries of important events. I lie in the morning cool And listen to birds squabble in the Full blooming trees.  I collect the sounds of window opening, Dripping faucet, humming refrigerator, husband snores. I picture the newspaper waiting there, Warming, browning, finally crisping, fading In the righteous sun, unread. I tell myself this news is already dead, The common history we muck through, Somehow. I do not want their news, their lives, thier grief, Crushing my fragile spring morning. When my husband leaves for work, he takes the paper With him. He asks, as he leans down to get it. "You don't mind?"  No. No, I do not mind.