Second Stop on the Improbable Places Poetry Tour

Jennifer Jean (left) with Colleen Michaels (right, next to mic.)

Nothing makes an Improbable Places Poetry Tour more improbable (and unpredictable) than kids, especially if they are my kids and they are swimming in a pool!

The second stop of the poetry tour brought us to the Cabot Street YMCA's indoor swimming pool. I did not read or swim last night, but I was well represented by my kids who insisted on going swimming during the poetry reading.

It was great fun to see a few poets swim as part of their performances.

What I love about these improbable venues is that they take the poet and the audience out of the usual comfortable settings and make the environment part of the experience.

Colleen Michaels, director of Montserrat College of Art's writing center and poet extraordinaire, did a fabulous job as host. And, that's her daughter, Eliza, playing with my kids in the pool. The acoustics with the splashing became a bit of a distraction, but all of that became part of the event, which felt more like a happening than a reading.

What a great mix of poets, Montserrat students, community members, and kids who come out for a fun night of poetry!

Be sure to watch the video from the first stop at the bicycle shop.

The amazing Dawn Paul!

Margaret Young

Montserrat student