by Dr. Stranger

On a cool Friday morning in April, several generous members of the Grand Rapids Chapter of RIDE maneuvered their way onto the campus of Calvin College, avoiding the local campus police, and parking on the pathway next to the Science Building and North Hall. Their purpose was to be available to about a dozen high school students who had gathered with hundreds of others to participate in the annual Young Authors Festival; these twelve aspiring poets had registered for a seminar offered by Dr. Stranger entitled “The Poetry of Power.” After a short opening orientation in the classroom, the eager writers descended on the bikes parked outside, pencils and writing pads in hand, capturing the sights, smells, sounds, and sensations of the scene. Bike owners graciously allowed these young field researchers to sit on, start, and otherwise examine each machine to their hearts’ content. After about twenty minutes of careful note taking, the class reconvened in the classroom to get down to some serious writing. At the end of the too-quick hour, a number of these grateful scholars expressed their appreciation for the session. One commented that he never imagined the world of motorcycling intersecting with the world of writing. He’d probably never read Zen and the Art...

The next day, on Saturday, another group, some of the same bikers from Friday morning, along with some additional gracious souls, showed up again for some students from the Middle School Writers Workshop. These younger writers seemed a little more intimidated by being in the presence of “biker trash,” but the members of RIDE gently dispelled their myths and stereotypes. And the short lines of verse produced in the classroom showed that this group also contained some budding talent.
A word of sincere appreciation goes out to all those folks who supported the arts by their presence at this event. Young writers met nice riders. And poetry ruled the day!

By way of farewell, two original haiku:

Sun-blanketed chrome
shoots silver darts mixed with hard
shattering echoes.

Rumbling hot steel
growls tenderly while hurling
sun-drenched particles.