Vermont Humanities Council * January 1, 2013
Worcester Range Snow Dusting
Worcester Range Snow Dusting by Paul Moody
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In This Issue
A Poem for Today
First Wednesdays
Vermont Reads 10th Anniversary
Civil War Book of Days
Humanities Commentaries
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Vermont Humanities E-newsletter
A Poem for the First Day of a New Year
New Years Day

by Kobayashi Issa

New Year's Day--
everything is in blossom!
I feel about average.

2013 is shaping up to be the year of poetry in Vermont! We hope you and your community will take part in Vermont Reads Poetry 180: A Turning Back to Poetry.

And be sure to stay tuned for the Vermont Arts Council's Poetry Out Loud, which is kicking into high gear at 38 Vermont high schools.

To celebrate this year of poetry, the Vermont Humanities Council and the Vermont Arts Council are teaming up to bring you a poem a week throughout 2013. Look for the poems in e-newsletters, on Facebook and Twitter, and on the web.

Poetry will abound throughout Vermont and we invite you to take part!
First Wednesdays 2012-2013
First Wednesdays Talks January 2

We look forward to seeing you in the new year!

BRATTLEBORO -- The Memoir Boom: Who, What, Why with Dartmouth professor and experimental memoirist Irene Kacandes. Host and location: Brooks Memorial Library. Learn more.

ESSEX JUNCTION -- The Genius of Albert Einstein with Middlebury professor Susan Watson. Host and location: Brownell Library. Learn more.

MANCHESTER -- Margaret Bourke-White, Courageous Photographer with actress and educator Sally Matson. Host: Mark Skinner Library. Location: First Congregational Church. Learn more.

MIDDLEBURY -- What We Learn When We Learn about History with historian and professor Woden Teachout. Location and host: Ilsley Public Library. Learn more.

MONTPELIER -- Vermont, the United States, and the World: How Our Health Ties Together with Dr. Nils Daulaire of the US Department of Health and Human Services. Host and location:Kellogg-Hubbard Library. Learn more.

NEWPORT -- Horses Like Lightning: A Story of Passage through the Himalayas with Dartmouth anthropologist Sienna Craig. Host and location: Goodrich Memorial Library. Learn more.

NORWICH -- The Meaning of Faith in Christian and Jewish Thought with Senior Rabbi Emeritus Ronald B. Sobel. Hosts: Norwich Public Library and Norwich Historical Society. Location: Norwich Congregational Church. Learn more.

RUTLAND -- Daily Life in Prewar Nazi Germany with Keene State professor Paul Vincent. Host and location: Rutland Free Library. Learn more.

ST. JOHNSBURY -- Remaking the Landscape, 1958-1978: Interstate Highways Come to Vermont with UVM professor Paul Bierman. Host and location: St. Johnsbury Athenaeum. Learn more.

Learn what talks will be taking place in a community near you.

Manosarovar, Tibet by Sienna Craig
Lake Manosarovar, Tibet by Sienna Craig

Vermont Reads 10th Anniversary

Celebrate Poetry in Honor of the 10th Anniversary of Vermont Reads

A poem "begins in delight and ends in wisdom."

- Robert Frost

Poetry 180 Celebrate the tenth anniversary of Vermont Reads by exploring poetry! Your community is invited to take part with this statewide read of Poetry 180: A Turning Back to Poetry, an anthology of contemporary poems edited by former US Poet Laureate Billy Collins.

Collins created this poem-a-day anthology to make poetry less daunting by assembling a "selection of short, clear, contemporary poems which any listener could basically 'get' on first hearing -- poems whose injection of pleasure is immediate." Students and adults of all ages will enjoy poetry in this book and other books.

Join us and discover -- or rediscover -- with others in your community the insight, beauty, and joy that poetry offers. Vermont Reads unites communities around reading, ideas, and activities. Libraries, schools, and other nonprofit organizations may apply; collaboration among town organizations and businesses is strongly encouraged.

* Receive FREE books and programming support.
* Host poetry readings and slams, poem-a-day projects, poetry writing contests, events with Vermont poets, and more.
* Listen to Vermont Public Radio's Vermont Reads feature.

Vermont Reads logo Full applications are online.

Apply: December 7, 2012 or May 15, 2013

We happily accept applications between deadlines.
Civil War Book of Days -- Marking Events that Happened Each Week During the Civil War
CivilWarEnewsMasthead Sign up for the Civil War Book of Days

VHC's weekly Civil War Book of Days marks the sesquicentennial of the Civil War. It commemorates what happened each week 150 years ago.

Read some of the latest editions of this e-newsletter.

Humanities Commentaries on VPR

Peter A. Gilbert Each month, VHC's Executive Director Peter Gilbert presents commentaries on Vermont Public Radio that examine current and past events from a humanities perspective.

Emancipation (1-1-2013) New Year's Day one hundred and fifty years ago was unlike any other in American history. With the stroke of a pen, four million humans stopped being under the law pieces of property owned by other people. The slaves in the Confederacy won their freedom. Peter Gilbert has the story.

Emotions versus Reason and Reality (12-26-2012) VPR has been a sampler of the essays recorded live at the Commentator Brunch earlier this year. For commentator Peter Gilbert, the theme -- "When Worlds Collide" -- was all about the Civil War.

The Halifax Disaster (12-5-12) This time of year, the sight of truckloads of Christmas trees on the highway headed south, remind Peter Gilbert of the story of Boston's Christmas tree. It goes back exactly ninety-five years to Halifax, Nova Scotia and the first World War. Here's Peter Gilbert with that powerful story.

Timely reflections from the archive

A Wreath (12-24-07) This time of year, beautiful holiday wreaths adorn front doors all over Vermont. They remind commentator Peter Gilbert of a favorite poem.

Winter Solstice (12-21-04) In the darkest part of the year, Peter Gilbert thinks about those who are discouraged.

To a Young Wretch (12-21-06) Across Vermont thousands of people are buying Christmas trees -- or cutting their own.  Commentator Peter Gilbert tells us about a Robert Frost poem in which the narrator struggles to feel the holiday spirit toward a neighbor who's cut a Christmas tree on his land without asking.  

"To a Young Wretch" is just one of sixty essays featured in Peter's book I Was Thinking by Peter Gilbert. Learn more! 

Thank You for Your Donation

The Vermont Humanities Council depends on donations from individuals and businesses to offer public programming and programming for underserved communities.

VHC accepts donations online or by mail or call Linda Wrazen, Development Officer at 802.262.2626 x 309.

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The Vermont Humanities Council presents more than 1,200 events every year. Thank you for your interest in lifelong learning!

Sincerely,

 

Sylvia Plumb, Director of Communications
Vermont Humanities Council