{"id":137019,"date":"2020-11-05T16:40:00","date_gmt":"2020-11-05T21:40:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.bates.edu\/news\/?p=137019"},"modified":"2021-03-17T12:33:13","modified_gmt":"2021-03-17T16:33:13","slug":"video-a-professors-award-winning-poem-graced-by-androscoggin-river-scenes","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.bates.edu\/news\/2020\/11\/05\/video-a-professors-award-winning-poem-graced-by-androscoggin-river-scenes\/","title":{"rendered":"Video: A professor&#8217;s award-winning poem, graced by Androscoggin River scenes"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>On a breezy recent October day, two Bates colleagues, professor Ian Khara Ellasante and multimedia producer Theophil Syslo, headed to the Androscoggin River in nearby Greene.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>There, they worked on a video project, a reading of Ellasante&#8217;s award-winning poem that evokes love for a grandfather, the ebb and flow of water, and the passage of \u201cseasons for healing and tempering like flood following drought following flood.\u201d&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The poem, titled \u201cgrandfather: a dialect of water,\u201d earned <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bates.edu\/faculty-expertise\/profile\/ian-khara-ellasante\/\">Ellasante, an assistant professor of gender and sexuality studies<\/a>, first prize in a <a href=\"https:\/\/newmillenniumwritings.org\/grandfather-a-dialect-of-water-ian-khara-ellasante\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">poetry-writing contest<\/a> sponsored by the literary magazine <em>New Millennium Writings<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\"><figure class=\"aligncenter size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1919\" height=\"1279\" src=\"https:\/\/www.bates.edu\/news\/files\/2019\/09\/190911_Portraits_1161_NEW.jpg\" alt=\"Ian Ellasante, new to the Program in Gender and Sexuality Studies, is a poet as well as a scholar and teacher. (Theophil Syslo\/Bates College)\n\" class=\"wp-image-127200\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.bates.edu\/news\/files\/2019\/09\/190911_Portraits_1161_NEW.jpg 1919w, https:\/\/www.bates.edu\/news\/files\/2019\/09\/190911_Portraits_1161_NEW-400x267.jpg 400w, https:\/\/www.bates.edu\/news\/files\/2019\/09\/190911_Portraits_1161_NEW-900x600.jpg 900w, https:\/\/www.bates.edu\/news\/files\/2019\/09\/190911_Portraits_1161_NEW-200x133.jpg 200w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1919px) 100vw, 1919px\" \/><figcaption>Ian Khara Ellasante is an assistant professor of gender and sexuality studies. (Theophil Syslo\/Bates College) <\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>Described by Alexis Williams, editor-in-chief of <em>New Millennium Writings<\/em>, as a \u201ccontinuing ripple and flow of love and reverence,\u201d the poem was inspired by Ellasante\u2019s paternal grandfather, a man who \u201cwept river water when he said his prayers\u201d and who:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>was the colors of the earth<\/em><br><em>who was all of its crimson clay&nbsp; &nbsp; blues and grey<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/youtu.be\/3xXZINGoI9Q\"><\/a>Ellasante describes their late grandfather as &#8220;the epitome of integrity and tenderness, of grace, strength, and compassion.&#8221;&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Though Ellasante&#8217;s grandfather died several years ago, they feel that &#8220;our conversations have continued in earnest as I consider all that he gave me. Maybe this is the way of grandfathers like him: to gift us with the best of themselves and write it permanently onto our hearts, to grow us and shape us like water.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><span style=\"color: #009779;\"><em>Video by Theophil Syslo\/Bates College<\/em><\/span>\n<p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed-youtube wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"&quot;grandfather: a dialect of water&quot;\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/3xXZINGoI9Q?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>grandfather: a dialect of water<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p>i had one who fished rivers<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>through the night<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>who wept river water<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>when he said his prayers<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>my hand on his big knuckled heart<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>he would say&nbsp; &nbsp; <em>cry with me<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>this is baptism: walk with me &nbsp; &nbsp; <\/em>he would say<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>immerse your heart &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; not your head<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>i had one who was the colors of the earth<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>who was all of its crimson clay&nbsp; &nbsp; blues and grey<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>this is Mississippi River mud<\/em> &nbsp; &nbsp; he would say<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>each color in its turn &nbsp; &nbsp; turning the earth<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>and earth\u2019s engine &nbsp; &nbsp; churning<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>days and years &nbsp; &nbsp; into the color of his hair<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>and into the deep shade of earth\u2019s wet bridges<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>when his lost hair began to return<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>pray with me<\/em>&nbsp; &nbsp; he would say<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<em>grandchildren &nbsp; i pray for you everyday<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>long of days grandfather<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>i want to know<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>the water memory loosening<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>a heavy tether in your voice<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>i had one who grew his hair long and thick<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>as wavy as a seaport &nbsp; rolling down his back<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>who had a story about the flood<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>that saved him and killed him<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>both in the same night<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>grandfather who knows the ways of water<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>and the ways of beauty &nbsp; &nbsp; i want to know<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>how do you keep a river<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>rising and surging like this<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>and why does it overflow you in these tears<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>come and see me<\/em> &nbsp; &nbsp; he would say<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>watch the rain &nbsp; whisper it down from the clouds<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>let the thunder soften you&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; toward quiet<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>sit with me &nbsp; &nbsp; he would say<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>grandfather of open spaces and tall trees<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>long of memory<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>long of lung<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>long of days &nbsp; &nbsp; sunlit and full of rain<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>how should i plant this seed &nbsp; i want to know<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>put it in the dirt and it will grow<\/em> &nbsp; he would say<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>and keep it there &nbsp; until something becomes<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;something more<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>i want to know &nbsp; &nbsp; grandfather<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>why are we unbraiding<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>toward the water\u2019s edge<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;and wait please<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>i have something more to say<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>i had one who rose &nbsp; at times with the haste<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>of a flood rising&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; who at others lingered<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>like the stretch and stillness of a long drought<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;speak the ways of water to me &nbsp; &nbsp; grandfather<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;speak seasons&nbsp; for healing and tempering<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;like flood following drought&nbsp; &nbsp; following flood<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>i had one who knew balance and reasons<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>for unbalance &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; of seeds in seasons<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;of reaping and then returning&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; and then<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>i had one who grew quiet<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>and waited in the flickering light<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>grandfather &nbsp; sit with me<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;tell me<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>i want to know&nbsp; &nbsp; what is over there to see<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>let me look at you<\/em>&nbsp; &nbsp; he would say<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>river banks are not meant to hold<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<em>cry with me &nbsp; walk with me<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Ian Khara Ellasante&#8217;s poem is an ode to their grandfather, who like so many of our grandparents, write themselves on our hearts, helping to &#8220;grow us and shape us like water.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":148,"featured_media":137031,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_hide_ai_chatbot":false,"_ai_chatbot_style":"","associated_faculty":[],"_Page_Specific_Css":"","_bates_restrict_mod":false,"_table_of_contents_display":false,"_table_of_contents_location":"","_table_of_contents_disableSticky":false,"_is_featured":false,"footnotes":"","_bates_seo_meta_description":"","_bates_seo_block_robots":false,"_bates_seo_sharing_image_id":0,"_bates_seo_sharing_image_twitter_id":0,"_bates_seo_share_title":"","_bates_seo_canonical_overwrite":"","_bates_seo_twitter_template":""},"categories":[4,133,166],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-137019","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-academic-life","category-creativity","category-humanities-history"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bates.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/137019","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bates.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bates.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bates.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/148"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bates.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=137019"}],"version-history":[{"count":9,"href":"https:\/\/www.bates.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/137019\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":137086,"href":"https:\/\/www.bates.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/137019\/revisions\/137086"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bates.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/137031"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bates.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=137019"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bates.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=137019"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bates.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=137019"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}