Eye - 09 August 2013

From recording to poetry

For the record

Could a chart topper be on the horizon for the recording clerk?

Augene Nanning, of Finchley Meeting, has been tickled by recent messages on her LinkedIn account, a social networking site for professionals.

She writes: ‘I keep getting messages… asking for endorsements for those I’m linked to.

‘I’m sure some computer must be making these up by searching keywords in our profiles.

‘Why else would it be asking: “Does Paul Parker know about recording?”

‘As I haven’t heard his single, yet, I haven’t endorsed him, yet…’

An Irish story

The past is always present in Ireland.

Friends visiting Cork for the recent Ireland Yearly Meeting had an encounter with the truth of this statement on one of the day trips that were organised.

A small group went to the old port of Cobh, near Cork city, and were guided around it by an eloquent and extremely well informed local historian. He talked about the history of the port, which was known as Queenstown between 1850 and 1920, and its important associations – such as being the final port of departure for RMS Titanic in 1912.

At the end of the tour the historian refused to accept any payment. He was asked why. He told the Friends present that it was because of what Quakers had done during the Irish famine. He gave his service with thanks.

Money was collected, however, and donated to Cork Penny Dinners, a charity that was set up at the time of the Irish famine and continues to help people in the city to this day.

During the famine of the 1840s Quakers distributed food and opened soup kitchens to alleviate the suffering. They were one of the first groups to act and give relief to everyone – irrespective of religion. A huge amount of money was raised from Quakers in Ireland and all over the world. It is estimated to be equivalent to several million pounds in today’s money. Friends from all over Ireland, including Cork, became involved in the relief measures. The kindness of Quakers at the time has never been forgotten.

Quaker poets in the Quarterly

Calling all poetically-inclined Friends!

This month there is a unique review of contemporary Quaker poetry and its rich historical legacy in our sister magazine, the Friends Quarterly.

There are feature articles by some of the UK’s leading poets explaining their writing and relating it to Quaker spirituality. Two current anthologists offer insights into the poetry of Friends, and there are eight significant poems – many previously unpublished.

The Friends Quarterly provides a rich insight into how major Quaker poets approach their craft. They discuss the relationship between poetry and belief, and provide an insight into the value of poetry in an individual’s spiritual life.

This issue features two award-winning poets. Philip Gross, TS Eliot award winner in 2012, sets out previously unpublished prose and poetry in an experimental investigation entitled ‘if God…’

Peter Daniels, whose recent publication is the current Poetry Book Society’s recommended translation, considers what it is to be a Quaker poet.

The work of the outstanding late Quaker poet UA Fanthorpe is the subject of a revealing set of responses moving from Sybil Ruth, who compiled the 2011 BBC Radio Four programme about her and other Quaker poets. Anne Cluysenaar examines the relationship between listening and language in poetry.

Simon Webb, whose Langley Press publishes a book of selected Quaker poems, provides a broad review of Quaker poets of the past – such as Thomas Ellwood and John Greenleaf Whittier.

Stevie Krayer, who with Rosie Bailey is putting the finishing touches to an anthology of contemporary Quaker poetry to be published this autumn, describes how they have approached this challenging task.

Both Rosie Bailey and Sean Street contribute their own poems, and there is poetry also accompanying their articles from Philip Gross, Anne Cluysenaar and Stevie Krayer.

Never before has such a complete exploration of Quaker poetry been available.

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