Poetry Infused with Nova Scotian places

 My published poetry collections tend to feature a lot of Nova Scotian elements, especially pertaining to the tides in the Annapolis Valley. The watery landscape is a part of my life that is constantly surrounding me, and a strong element in many of my poems from both my collections, Spoken Waves and Patches of Sunlight.

 (left) photo of me standing on the South Mountain taking a photo of the view of the Minas Basin and North Mountain. 

First, I will go through the poem titles in Spoken Waves that relate to beaches or areas in Nova Scotia.

• "Baxter's Harbour", pg. 3
• "Chance" pg.12 
• "Blomidon" pg.14
• "Heustis Beach" pg.18
• "Nova Scotian March" pg.24
• "Satin Seaside" pg 51
• "Silent Exchange" pg.71

For some of these poems, they still evoke such a strong sense of place, like I am immersed in wherever the setting of the poem was again, I can feel it so strongly, which is why I wrote the poems in the first place, to evoke these emotions, which were often tied into the landscapes and places for me.

I won't repeat the explanation for the poems that are titled after a place, but for the ones that are not obvious where I am referring to, here is a quick run through:

    "Chance" pg. 12, is referencing the highway drive to Queensland Beach, and all the sights we pass by on the highway. Die, the singular word for a pair of dice, is referring to an artist's painting on a rock, same with the "puzzle cube" illustration on rocks and "robot eyes" line because of the painted split rocks that remind me of a certain animated character. 

    "Satin Seaside" pg. 51 can read as a vague reference to any beach and the obvious play on sewing language, but it was actually inspired by Martinique beach, which I had visited for the first time and gone swimming despite the bitter cold water even in summer. The water just kept retreating around these polished  little rocks in the sand and it left these marks that reminded me of buttons sewn into seat cushions and the poem sprang from that image. Of course, all of these poems have other layers than simple observations of the landscape, but sometimes hearing the initial inspiration for a piece can be interesting tidbits to learn about behind the scenes.

    "Silent Exchange" pg. 71 is about many things as the poetry book begins to summarize and come to a close, but I used imagery of the Minas Basin tides as well as the dykes that hold back the water, where people can walk or bike the trails that wind in and around the river for quite a distance. For this one poem, centered around healing wounds, it shows both pain and beauty, so I hope those who love this landscape appreciate the reference without being insulted by the comparison to a scab as the water empties the basin. Poetry is what it is and is not for anyone, but I do love this landscape, so using it various ways throughout my writing just feels right.

The easiest way for me to explain Nova Scotia's beauty is to show you some pictures I took of various beaches and landscapes:

 (left) photo of Baxter's Harbour waterfall in the winter.

 (left) photo of Baxter's Harbour waterfall in the spring to early summer, gushing water.

 (left) photo of Blomidon beach and Cape Blomidon's famous -red-orange cliff side. You can also hike through the woods to the top and overlook the water.

 (left) photo from the top of the Blomidon hiking trail overlooking the water and coastline.

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Second, I will go through Patches of Sunlight, which also contains several references to Nova Scotian landscapes, while not all are obvious to an outside reader, they drew inspiration from these places for me personally. 

• "Mist" pg.28
• "Waves" pg.29
• "Reservoir" pg. 33
• "Lunenburg" pg.40
• "Noon Fog" pg.41
• "Look Off" pg. 43
• "Contrast" pg. 48
• "Mirror" pg.53
• "Breaststroke" pg. 61
• "Houston's beach" pg. 71
• "Tidal Basin" pg. 72
• "Scott's Bay" pg. 79
• "Dandelion in November" pg. 80
• "Bumblebee in Flight" 88
• "Surge" pg. 94
• "Sundial" pg. 97
• "Resonance" pg. 101
• "Public Gardens" pg. 107
• "Waterfront" pg. 112

You might be surprised by these lists if some other poems you may have thought would be on them are not, because there is an element of water and sense of place in many of the poems without specifically being inspired by any place for me. However, if it reminded you of a place according to your interpretation of the poem that is perfectly alright because the reader always brings themselves into the equation with poetry and even fiction. Once published, it is no longer just the writer or poet telling the story or narrative through their lens because the reader brings an element of themselves into the mix. Your own experiences will shape how you interpret these poems and that is what makes poetry so beautiful sometimes.

Again, I will skip the ones with the name of the place of inspiration in the title and just go through the less obvious references to places in Nova Scotia:

    "Mist" pg.28 I wrote after a visit to Delaps Cove where there is a platform overlooking the falls. Of course this had more meaning than a simple observation, hopefully the reader can pick up on the emotional aspects of these poems as well as their place references once I go through this list.
    "Waves" pg.29 was written about Aylesford lake where my grandmother used to own a cottage where we swam as kids into my teenage years. She has since passed and sold the property, but it held some great memories before the lake became more polluted and less inviting. 
    "Noon Fog" pg.41 This one I wrote about a specific beach we go to in the summer, but really can apply to any of the South Shore beaches in Nova Scotia and serves as a reminder to wear sunblock despite the haze in the sky, because the sun is much stronger than you might think. Of course, the poem also has a reference to my concussion symptoms of light sensitivity and other emotional aspects. Do not let it's short appearance fool you into thinking it was not given just as much thought as one of my longer poems.
    "Contrast" pg. 48 is referring to the specific view (which is now changed due to development in the area) at the Reservoir park, where you could overlook these old abandoned orchards out to the Minas Basin and see Blomidon, but since I wrote this poem the orchard has been replaced by a construction site and housing development.
    "Mirror" pg.53  and "Breaststroke" pg. 61, are both also about the Reservoir park. I spent a lot of time there during this period of writing and therefore it became a big inspiration and part of the Nova Scotian beauty I enjoyed. I have many great memories there filled with laughter.
    "Dandelion in November" pg. 80 is about Blomidon Beach, but the focus being on this mini ecosystem where dandelions still thrived despite the impending cold weather.
    "Bumblebee in Flight" 88 is specifically inspired by a photo I took of a bee mid-flight off some flowers in Dartmouth at the ferry terminal. It's a beautiful spot to sit and have a meal outside at the picnic tables.
    "Surge" pg. 94 Baxter's Harbour is one of my favourite places and more recently a more commonly known tourist spot on the Bay of Fundy. The waterfall is tall and always a sight to behold. Sometimes the wind is so strong, it can take your breath away literally and with it's beauty.
    "Sundial" pg. 97 is a reference to the Halifax Public Gardens' sundial, which I visited with my grandmother, and read the same poem aloud at her funeral service later on as a special tribute to her. You will have to read it to understand how it suits that scene.
    "Resonance" pg. 101 is a mixture of Mahone Bay inspiration and the LaHave river area, which is a lovely drive to get to Risser's beach, and once in a while you can see cormorants siting on buoys like they have no trouble balancing atop their slick round surface.

Here are some more photos I took of places from some of the poems titled by the same name as their inspiration:

 (left) photo of the look off in late summer to autumn time.

 (left) photo of the look off during winter after light snowfall

 

 (left) edited photo of Scott's Bay Bridge, demonstrating it's winding length across this river to the pebbled beach.

 (left) photo of Scott's Bay Bridge, after they extended it around the everchanging river and people put a log to extend the path even further.

 (left) photo of muddy Waterfront park at low tide, meaning no water until high tide returns slowly over a period of hours. Can see Cape Blomidon, part of the North Mountain from here.

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The following poems that I did not include in the list above from Patches of Sunlight that still remind me of a place, but that place is home during the pandemic entering into the post-pandemic sort of time period, where I was simply observing bees and flowers in the backyard because the beaches were closed. Hence the first title, "Bees Became my Life Force" because, that was a keen interest at the time when we were not permitted to leave and I was injured to go much of anywhere had there not been a pandemic. So watching the bees and sitting on a blanket on my lawn between working and home became a motivation and a hobby of mine. Therefore, the following poems simply remind me of home and my experience with observing life's little essential workers: the bees.

• "Bees Became my Life Force" pg. 67
• "Duality of Bees" pg. 70
• "Bumblebees" pg. 99
• "Seeds of Gratitude" pg. 103
• "Our Friendly Pollinators" pg. 105
• "Wildflower" pg. 113

My interest in close up photography, of flowers especially, sprang from a lack ability to write due to a head injury I sustained around that time. The concussion made it difficult to write for extended periods of time, especially on the computer as I used to. Once I was able to incorporate screens slowly back into my life, I was able to snap photos while taking a short stroll around the yard as a way of still expressing my creativity in shorter bursts of energy, rather than focusing for long stretches of time on a writing piece that at that time proved a bit difficult. Of course, the injury healed with time and reflecting on that time is a lot easier the more I recovered, to the extent that I can fully immerse myself in writing again without straining to read, focus, or have painful symptoms of concussion. 

I hope you enjoyed this insight into my poetry books and their relationship to the Nova Scotian landscape. I hope to write more poetry in the future incorporating this sense of place that is rooted deeply in my personal story and has become an aspect of my personality in a sense.

-Julia May