I have read poems dressed in hot gowns of political metaphor. Most verses are fat with protest as Juvenalian satire is always carved onto the plaques of resistance as word-slingers spew resilience against unending earthly struggles. Poet Georgette Howington creatively changes the regular political narrative, she confidently struts onto the literary podium and holding on to her earth poetry donning green imagery. The rarity of her subject- lines is profoundly astounding given the current trending settings of pain yawn and groan. Poet Howington delves onto a unique but a special theme of environment and soil sciences. A multi-gifted wordsmith, environmentalist and conservationist. Her dictionary is in sync with natural life . We interdependent and interconnect to both earthly and water ecosystems. They play a pivotal role in our lives and we profoundly attach more value to them. Poems by Howington are gems of green revolution and glints of climate consciousness. TIME OF THE POET REPUBLIC embraces diversity of ideas, cultural tolerance, inclusivity and creativity in the personality of distinguished environmentalist, agronomist and green earth revolutionary poet Georgette Howington– (Blurb by Mbizo CHIRASHA)
“Voice for the Unseen”
Some speak for the poor and hungry.
Some speak for the unwanted and lonely.
And some speak for the beaten, and mistreated.
I speak for bacteria: vital for recycling nutrients.
I speak for Fungi: networking transfers through
symbiotic relationships.
I speak for predators, protozoa and nematodes.
I speak for microarthropods.
Citizens of soil. One handful home to more creatures
than humans on Earth.
So, when you see Roundup, herbicides, and
pesticides, oil soaps, chlorine, and gasoline
…poured onto the ground…THINK…
they are destroying entire societies of soil life
vital to ALL LIFE.
I speak for the unseen micro-lives in soil; thus,
I speak for YOU.
(Published in “Light And Shadow”; 2018)
“Scars, Philippine Sweet Potatoes and Mango”
My five year old fingers pressed coconut oil onto the raised
red edge around the glassy skin, about the size of my palm,
on my Mother’s brown thigh, not unlike a dozen or more other
scars on her legs painting stories like faded tattoos.
She pointed to one, “Bombers overhead, shrapnel pierced
my legs, my basket of sweet potatoes flying, flesh burning,
hot blood flowing but the only pain I felt was constant hunger.”
For two years they ran from village to village; they hid.
During the day dressed as a boy she went to the old farm
fields and hands plunged into the womb of earth pulling
sweet potatoes to light, setting them free; a sacred find.
The assault passing over, she knelt to gather all she could
save, placing them back into a basket and running with the
others into a grove of mango where fruit laid next to rotting
bodies and she picked up as many as the basket would hold.
That night Tita Lola baked sweet potatoes in hot rocks, under
the tropical skies and the children ate the warm soft orange
flesh as if they were chocolate confections; mango juice
dribbling down their chins sucking on big seeds.
My Mother stroked my hair as I rubbed the oil over her scars.
(Published in, “The Poeming Pigeon Poems About Food”; 2015)
“Conversation With the Wind”
I don’t know you
yet we touch often.
The skin on my face
blushes the chill always
make my cheeks pink.
The force of your strength
tangles my hair into
streaming rifts
of this way,
or that way.
I hold it down
while squinting,
my nose wrinkled,
lips mumbling, “I prefer
still days”, and “don’t
care for sailing”,
but you never seem
to resent that.
No, instead, you
continue to greet me
with poetic whispers
dancing along side
like an old friend.
(Published in Poetry Express Magazine, 2018)
Georgette Howington is a Filipina-American poet, gardener, naturalist and conservationist. As a activist, in California and the San Francisco Bay Area, for over 30 years she has specialized in the conservation of secondary-cavity nesters such as the Western Bluebird. Georgette is a County Coordinator and State Assistant Program Director for the California Bluebird Recovery Program (www.cbrp.org) and monitors nestboxes specifically designed to provide nesting opportunities for this group of birds. Due to loss of habitat and now Climate Change, many birds have lost valuable resources they need for successful breeding. Every year since 1996, monitors have recorded an average of 17,000 fledges annually and this has impacted the overall population.She says, “Don’t underestimate the power of a small group of like-minded people. Big change can happen through the step-by-step efforts of people who just don’t give up,”Due to her passion for the environment and conservation, much of Georgette’s poetry is about wildlife and nature. Her poetry has been published in journals such as Sleet, Iodine, Poetry Express Magazine and Poeming Pigeon. She’s won awards in the Ina Coolbrith Poetry Circle Contests and also, published in the Sacred Grounds, Benicia First Tuesday and Poetry Express Anthologies.Georgette lives in Northern California in the San Francisco Bay Area with her husband and two indoor cats.
TIME OF THE POET REPUBLIC CURATOR
Mbizo CHIRASHA, UNESCO-RILA Affiliate Artist. Freedom of Speech Fellow to PEN- Zentrum Deutschland,Germany. Alumni of the International Human Rights Arts Festival in New-York, USA. Literary Arts Activism Diplomatie. Globally Certified Arts Mediums Curator and Influencer. Internationally Published Page and Spoken Word Poet. Writer in Residence. Arts for Human Rights Catalyst. Core Team Member of the Bezine Arts and Humanities Project. His illustrious poetry, hybrid writings, political commentary, short fiction, book reviews and Arts Features are published in more than 400 spaces notably the Monk Arts and Soul in Magazine in United Kingdom. Atunis Poetry.com in Belgium. Demer press poetry series in Netherlands. World Poetry Almanac in Mongolia. Poesia journal in Slovenia. Bezine Arts and Humanities Webzine in USA. The Poet a Day in Brooklyn, USA. Litnet Writers Journal in South Africa. African Crayons in Nigeria. Poetry Bulawayo in Zimbabwe. Pulp-pit USA. The FictionalCafe international Journal, Texas USA. Best New African Poetry series in Zimbabwe, Zimbolicious Poetry Collections in Zimbabwe. Co-edited Street Voices International Publications with Andreas Weiland in Germany. Co-Edited Silent Voices Anthology, a Tribute to Chinua Achebe. Co-Edited the Corpses of Unity, solidarity collection to victimized Cameroonians with Nsah Mala. Curated and Edited the Zimbabwe We Want Poetry, Inside Digraceland speaking poetic truth to the Mugabe regime and other bad regimes. He owns the Time of the Poet blog zine, MIOMBOPUBLISHING that published the #GlobalCallforPeaceProject titled the Second of EARTH is Peace. A LETTER to the PRESIDENT his experimental resistance poetry collection was released in August 2019 by Mwanaka and Media Publishing. Co- Authored Whispering Woes of Ganges and Zambezi with Sweta Vikram in India. Good Morning President his first poetry collection was published in 2011 by Zimbabwean published based in United Kingdom, Diaspora Publishers.COVID 19 Satansdeadly fart is forthcoming. Chirasha is Founder and the Chief Editor of Brave Voices Poetry Journal, https://bravevoicespress.home.blog/ and WOMAWORDS LITERARY PRESS,https://womawordsliterarypress.home.blog/
MORE INFORMATION visit, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mbizo_Chirasha
TIME OF THE POET REPUBLIC- An Internet based Writers Center, Archiving Theme based Digital Poetry Anthologies and publishing Iconic Poets ,Writers and Artists from around the globe. TIME OF POET REPUBLIC was founded by UNESCO-RILA Affiliate ARTIST. Freedom of SPEECH Fellow PEN-Zentrum Deutschland.2019 African FELLOW ihraf.org and Acclaimed Literary Arts Diplomatie,Mbizo CHIRASHA.
