Back in late August, I found out I was going to be Canada's newest Poet Laureate. This is how my appointment was worded to me: Canada's newest Poet Laureate. Which sounds an awful lot like I could be the newest Poet Laureate of Canada—but that's not what I am. I was, and perhaps still am (unless there's been a new appointment) the newest Poet Laureate in the country, standing as the Poet Laureate of Scugog Township— a township in south-central Ontario, largely made up of rural communities. The population sits at around 22,000 people. When I announced my new position online, so many people were happy for me. I was showered with congratulations for days. Among these congratulatory messages, however, there were a handful of people whose good wishes carried a whiff of...condescension. A hint of "isn't that cute!" A pinch of, "Aw, a poet laureate of cows!" —which are words someone actually messaged to me.
And I mean, I think being a poet laureate of cows would be amazing, but I took the comments in the patronizing spirit with which they were given and did what I always do when someone says something stupid: felt sorry for them.
The Township of Scugog has a teeming and vibrant arts community, and the Scugog Arts Council and Township, who nurtured the Poet Laureate position into existence, are invariably supportive of the arts and artists. The existence of my position, in a time of cuts to arts funding, is proof of that. When someone —intentionally or not—belittles me or what I stand for, they show the sadly limited scope of their world. Small towns and rural communities are home to more than pastoral beauty and sunshine sketches; they are also home to some of the best artists in the world. They are home to close-knit communities and art lovers. We may be more spread out along dirt concession roads and beneath a bigger, bluer sky, but the arts are here, and robust as ever.
I spent my first event as Poet Laureate at the Black Out Poetry tent at Culture Days in the lakeside town of Port Perry. Culture Days is a national celebration of culture in cities and towns across the country. Each year, these festivities attract millions of people. Small, unassuming Port Perry is one of the top Culture Days locations in Canada.
Why?
Because of the passion of the community. During the six hours I spent in the park, I met many incredible people of all ages who may have not understood what black out poetry was at first, but who threw themselves into it with their whole hearts once it was explained to them. One man sat at my table for over an hour, working on his poem. One child, who couldn't yet read, carefully blacked out the words of a tourism brochure. When she was done, I sat down beside her and read the poem aloud. "Your first book of poetry," I said, handing the brochure back to her. "Congratulations, poet!"
She beamed, then bolted, running across the park to her father, waving the brochure over her head and calling out, "Daddy! I'm a poet!"
Of course, this interaction could have happened in a city. But in a city, people wouldn't marvel at the quaintness of my position. It would be accepted as part of the artistic infrastructure of an urban space. But art should be part of the infrastructure of every space, urban or rural. And the population of the space or the proximity of the art or artist to livestock shouldn't matter. Art and artists matter everywhere. I am so glad I get to spend the next four years celebrating this fact.
Hollay Ghadery is a multi-genre writer living in rural Ontario on Anishinaabe land. She has her MFA in Creative Writing from the University of Guelph. Her fiction, non-fiction, and poetry have been published in various literary journals and magazines, including The Malahat Review, Room, CAROUSEL, THIS, The Antigonish Review, Grain, and The Fiddlehead. Fuse, her memoir of mixed-race identity and mental health, was released by Guernica Editions’ MiroLand imprint in Spring 2021 and is a finalist for the 2023 Canadian Bookclub Awards. Her debut collection of poetry, Rebellion Box, came out Radiant Press in spring 2023 and her collection of short fiction, Widow Fantasies, is scheduled for release with Gordon Hill Press in fall 2024. www.hollayghadery.com.