January The Twenty-ninth, 2010 Again it snowed today. The light puffs reminded me of those old crystal balls that hold a small model of a town or a forest and white flakes that fill the surrounding liquid when shaken. No doubt, the winter birds will be active again tomorrow, as they always are on snowy days. After the last snowfall, I spied a flock of chickadees and titmice with a wren or two foraging among the trees for the remnants of summer’s bounty. Read more at http://rayzimmerman.weebly.com/the-rains-come.html

Remembering a Winter Solstice

The sky overhead brightened from black to indigo to that bright purple of dawning to ordinary blue. The red band in the East faded from bright red to the pale color of corned beef. As the pink sky faded, a robin gave its morning cry, answered by the insistent “teacher, teacher, teacher” of a tufted titmouse. The red leaves of the maples and the yellow leaves of the tulip poplar have faded and fallen. The greens of pines and cedars remain to offset the brown oaks which will hold their leaves into winter and spring. Back inside I saw a slip of orange sky above the horizon. It grew and rose as the day progressed. Then the whole round sun was above the horizon. Dawn had long since given way to daylight. In the new light of day I noticed a venerable old oak visible from my kitchen window. It held several green balls of mistletoe. That night I tried some binocular and naked eye astronomy. Orion shone above the eastern horizon. With binoculars, the individual stars were just points of light, except the central one in the sword. This one was a diffuse smudge – the Orion Nebula, M42 in the language of astronomers. The nebula is a stellar nursery, a gas cloud where conditions are proper for formation of new stars. I have seen this nebula through small telescopes which revealed a cluster of four stars in a trapezoid shape. These young stars from the Trapezium, listed as Theta-One Orinis in Burnhams Celestial Handbook. Taurus seemed faint in comparison to its surrounding constellations. I trained my binoculars on Aldebaran, the red star in the lower left corner, and saw it surrounded by a wispy halo. A band of haze must account for that halo and the dimness of the constellation. The Pleiades were as bright as ever. In Japan they are known as Subaru, and I ponder how many drivers in English speaking countries notice the stars surrounding the name plate on automobiles that bear the constellation's name. Have they ever wondered what those stars have to do with Subaru?. I saw six stars in Suburu with my naked eye. The six become fifty or so with my binoculars. Above the Pleiades I saw a very bright object, orange in the binoculars. It was undoubtedly the planet Mars, very close that year. My binoculars were not powerful enough to reveal any details of the surface, though on other occasions I have trained them on Jupiter and seen four of its moons. Auriga, The Charioteer, was visible, but Capella, its brightest star, seemed much fainter than usual. The faint triangle near Capella was not visible, apparently concealed by the same band of haze partly covering Taurus. Together, Capella and the triangle are known as the mother goat and the three kids. Cassiopeia was bright, truly a queen of the polar region. The other constellations surrounding Polaris were hidden behind the trees and the mountain. Soon Orion and his hounds would chase the bull across the sky and the springtime constellations would rise. The falling leaves of the trees had given way, and the trees thrust bare branches to the sky. Soon screech owls would nest in the woodlot near my house. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Add Comment

The Guardian - Strophe: Encounter

She moves in circles, round and round, beside the road. The guardian is not coiling, not preparing to strike, just circling. Is she injured by a passing car? Is she warming up, absorbing heat from the pavement? Is she preparing to give birth? What business is she about on this mountaintop in northeast Alabama? I stop the car but don’t get out. I don’t want to meet the Guardian. I am not motivated to uncurl the scaly body and take an accurate measurement of the guardian’s length. I am enough of a woodsman to have a healthy respect for the power of a mature timber rattlesnake. The snake inspires fear in the minds, but even more so in the emotions, of those who encounter her. Read the full story at http://rayzimmerman.weebly.com

First Days Slated for February Release

For Immediate Release Contact: Ray Zimmerman: znaturalist@gmail.com or (423) 315-0721 Contact Ray to order of autographed copies for delivery on the release date. Ray Zimmerman is pleased to announce the upcoming publication of his chap book First Days by Finishing Line Press of Georgetown, Kentucky. First Days tells the story of Coronary Bypass Surgery and recovery. It is a journey from sickness to health, and reentry into a world strangely transformed by the joy of healing. Finishing Line Press is now accepting advance orders with release scheduled for February 1, 2013. From the Back Cover Ray Zimmerman’s new chapbook chronicles the First Days during and after heart surgery. His short, tight poems capture the strange sense of anesthesia’s mystic time travel as he stares death in the face, that dark lady in his dreams. This darkness is offset by Zimmerman’s sense of humor about pain, financial and physical stress, as he returns to the sensory world of chickadees, roses, and even his neighbor’s cigarette smoke, a blessing. His strong connection to nature helps his injured heart heal with the certain knowledge that, though death will one day come, his “atoms will forever pulse through the earth” he loves. - Bill Brown, The News Inside After a fleeting dance with “the lady in black” who says she’ll be back for him at a later date (“Anesthesia”), Zimmerman approaches life after heart surgery with wit and determination. Aware that each moment alone could leave him defenseless and in need of help, he “slept with [his] door unlocked” (“First Days”). Tackling fear and depression, and the uncertainty of a body that failed, Zimmerman allows nature to heal and inspire him through his recovery. Despite emotional and spiritual turmoil, these poems are a testament to our ability as humans to endure. - KB Ballentine, Fragments of Light About Ray Zimmerman Ray is president of the Chattanooga Writers Guild and has previously served as board member, President, and Vice President. His performance poems, including “Sign” (AKA “Mercury”), “No Hair,””Madness,””A Special Place” and “Ham and Rye” have delighted audiences and won prizes in poetry slams. He is the executive editor of Southern Light: Twelve Contemporary Southern Poets from Ford, Falcon, and McNeil, publishers. Southern Light was the featured topic of a panel discussion at the Southern Festival of Books, Nashville, 2011 and recently received a favorable review in the literary magazine, 2nd and Church. Jeff Biggers, Associate Editor of the Bloomsbury Review, favorably reviewed Ray’s Chapbook, Searching for Cranes, in an end of year roundup article. Ray was the subject of a feature article in the September 2008 issue of Blush magazine. Order online at http://www.finishinglinepress.com click on “PREORDER FORTHCOMING TITLES link” or send check or money order to: Finishing Line Press Post Office Box 1626 Georgetown, KY 40324

Southern Light #1

Southern Light tops Local Author List http://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/Southern-Light/159959427392604 Winder Binder Gallery and Bookstore (Chattanooga, TN) lists Southern Light: Twelve Contemporary Southern Poets as its best selling book by a local author. Their lists of best selling books at their store. reflect only sales at Winder Binder, but could give you insight into what books Chattanoogans are buying. The lists are split into books by local authors, books about Chattanooga, and books by national authors. Other books by members of the Chattanooga Writers Guild appear on two of the lists..Monessa Guilfoil of WUTC radio has published the lists on her blog, http://monessasmontage.wordpress.com/2012/11/12/winder-binder-gallery-and-books-lists-its-top-ten-local-bestsellers/comment-page-1/#comment-14 Soouthern Light also received a great review in the most recent issue of 2nd and Church, Nashville's literary magazine. http://secondandchurch.typepad.com/2nd-church/welcome-to-2nd-church-where-writers-read.html Ford, Falcon and McNeil, publishers, released Southern Light: Twelve Contemporary Southern Poets in April of 2011. The book is a diverse collection of works by authors connected to the southern landscape. Each poet speaks, with a unique voice, of a land illuminated by the hot southern sun. Over 180 poems celebrate both regional traditions and life in the New South. Several contributing authors have publshed books since Southern Light was released in 2011, Southern Light includes poems by: Robert Morgan, Penny Dyer, Bill Brown, Bruce Majors, Jenny Sadre-Orafai, Rebecca Cook, Ray Zimmerman, E. Smith Gilbert, Helga Kidder, K. B. Ballentine, Finn Bille, and Dan Powers. Ray Zimmerman served as Executive Editor, while Bruce Majors and Ed Lindberg also served on the editorial team. Humanities Tennessee selected Southern Light: Twelve Contemporary Southern Poets as the topic of a panel discussion at the Southern Festival of Books, Nashville, October 14-16, 2011. Approximately 20,000 people attend the annual festival to meet their favorite writers and become familiar with talented new writers. http://www.humanitiestennessee.org/festival/current.php The Southern Light reading and discussion took place Friday, October 14 at 12:00 noon in the old Supreme Court Room, Legislative Plaza. Panelists included Robert Morgan, Bill Brown, Penny Dyer, and Ray Zimmerman. Southern Light: Twelve Contemporary Southern Poets was also included in Summer Showcase, an exhibition at Poets House, NYC, throughout the month of July, 2011. At the conclusion of the exhibition, a copy was archived in the Poets House library and database. http://poetshouse.org/showcase.htm

I have a reading at Union Avenue Books in Knoxville on Sunday at 3:00. I have had some difficulty getting the new view to work. Will keep trying. Meanwhile, check out http://rayzimmerman.weebly.com and http://anewwriterweeblycom.weebly.com Thanks - Ray

Writers at the Library

Tuesday, April 10
SCHEDULE

7:00 – 7:10 – Registration and opening remarks

7:10 – 7:30 – Keynote Speaker,
Corinne Hill, Library Director

7:30 – First guided tour begins in the lounge area

7:30 – 8:30 Local authors read from their works

Area A – Side porch off of auditorium

7:30 – George Taylor reads from Non-Prophet Murders, a mystery by Becky Wooley
7:40 – Sharleen Rhinock reads from one of her novels
7:50 – Sybil Baker reads from one of her novels
8:00 – Peggy Douglas reads from her poetry chapbook, Twisted Roots
8:10 – Jerry Minchew reads from one of his action adventure novels
8:20 – Nell Mohney reads from one of her inspirational books

Area B – Computer alcove to the right of the reference desk

7:30 – Ray Zimmerman reads from his literary non-fiction e-zene
7:40 – Joyce Walters reads from her memoir, Thomaston Queen
7:50 – Daniel Swanger reads from his book of poetry, A Treasured Keepsake of Art
8:00 – Barbara Tucker reads from her novel, Traveling Through
8:10 – James Parker reads from his gift book for graduates, My College Tips
8:20 – Rachel Burson reads from her children’s book, Aalayah’s New Hope

Area C – Near the windows at the far right of the first floor

7:30 – Kevin Brown reads from his book of poetry, Abecedarium
7:40 – Condra Reed reads from her Bible guide, Highlights of the Old Testament
7:50 – Dewey Dempsey reads from his historical fiction, Atskili: Secret Paths of the Cherokee
8:00 – Melinda Evaul reads from her contemporary Christian romance, Grow Old along with Me
8:10 – Francine Fuqua reads from her historical fiction novel, In Pursuit of Abraham
8:20 – Vivian Moore reads from her novel, Room in the Attic

8:00 – Second guided tour begins in the lounge area.
9:00 – Doors are locked and the party moves to the fountain area

Door prize winners will be posted in the auditorium every 15 minutes.

Little Owl - New Schedule

Little Owl Music & Arts Festival Schedule of Events
Bios for several of the Porch Stage performers follow
1:00-2:00 Dance demonstration from “Emerald Hips Belly Dance Instruction” teacher Suzanne Rambo. She will also do hooping.

1-2p Chattanooga Kirtan Band in the field including the following instruments: Native American flute, Vocal, Sitar, Harmonium, Tabla and Jymbe drums,and other percussion.)

1:00-2:00 Raptors arrive and set up
2:00-2:45 Birds of Prey Raptor show by SOAR

Orchard Stage
NOON Opening song by Gilbert Sewell & welcome by Bill Fisher
12:10 Bob Carty, Announcements/giveaways
1:00 Hara Paper
1:30 Frank Eaton
1:40 Announce the raptor show
2:00 Raptor Show
2:30 Uncle Lightning
3:00 Jack Pine Savages String Band w/ Gilbert Sewell/poster contest winner announced
3:30 Troy Underwood
4:00 Jerre Haskew
5:00-6:00 Dalton Roberts
6PM –over--

Porch Stage
12:00 Robin Burk 
12:30 Jim Pfitzer
1:00 Grant Fetters
1:30 Michael Gray 
2:00 Raptor Show
3:00 Finn Bille
3:15 ` Christyna Jensen
3:30 Marcus Patrick Ellsworth 
4:00 Janie Dempsey Watts
4:20 Dr. Susan Hickman
4:40 Ray Zimmerman 
5:00 Ginnie Strickland Sams
5:30 Peggy Douglas

Ray Zimmerman – Master of Ceremonies
Ray Zimmerman's performance poems, including “Sign” (AKA “Mercury”), “No Hair,””Madness,””A Special Place” and “Ham and Rye” have delighted audiences and won prizes in poetry slams. He is the executive editor of Southern Light: Twelve Contemporary Poets. He is also a former president of the Chattanooga Writers Guild and won Second Place in the 2007 Poetry Contest of the Tennessee Writers Alliance. Ten days after undergoing coronary bypass surgery, he read his winning poem, “Glen Falls Trail,” at the awards ceremony of the Southern Festival of Books at Legislative Plaza, Nashville, Tennessee. Jeff Biggers, Associate Editor of the Bloomsbury Review, favorably reviewed Ray’s Chapbook, Searching for Cranes, in his end of year roundup article. He organizes poetry readings at Chattanooga venues. Ray was the subject of a feature article in the September 2008 issue of Blush magazine.

12:00 Robin Burk – wooden flutes and hand pan drum
Robin Burk is a multi-instrumentalist from Chattanooga, TN. She enjoys playing the Native American Style Flute, Ethno-Fusion flutes, Handpan, Steel Tongue Drums, and various melody and rhythm instruments. Robin is a member of the Smoky Mountain Flute Circle and the newly formed Chattanooga Flute Circle. She has played onstage at Track 29, Camp House, New Dischord music festival, Musical Echoes music festival (Ft Walton, FL), as well as other locations, including churches and festivals throughout the Southeast. Robin was awarded first place in Allied Art’s 2011 PARK(ing) Day completion. For more information:

12:30 Jim Pfitzer
Jim is a storyteller and writer who has performed and taught workshops from coast to coast. His personal stories cover topic ranging from too-close-for-comfort black bear encounters, to the significance of sweet tea in southern society, to explorations of the mad artist within. Pfitzer says "he would rather paddle a canoe than drive a car and prefers watching birds to watching television." When he isn’t telling stories, Pfitzer keeps bees, grows mushrooms, and carves wooden spoons. He is currently working on a one man show exploring the life and work of conservationist and ecologist Aldo Leopold. For more information or to read Pfitzer’s blog visit www.jimpfitzer.com.

1:00 Grant Fetters
A reoccurring dream kept Grant awake for several nights until he recounted this dream to his wife. The dream was about a Grasshopper that wanted Grant to tell his story. With the encouragement of his wife, Grant started to write about “Horace the Hopper.” This story is about a small green Grasshopper that wants to see the world and what he experiences on his journey.
Grant is an accomplished speaker in Toastmasters, he uses his speaking skills to give programs and book readings to children in the area. He belongs to several writing groups from Knoxville and Chattanooga, and in his spare time, Grant is a Design Engineer in the automotive industry and lives in Madisonville with his wife Sharon and their four cats.

1:30 Michael Gray
Michael Gray an author, story teller, musician and accomplished liar has performed at Memphis in May, The Dogwood Arts Festival, Mountain Fest, Wide Open Floor, Wordfest (producer/director) and on WUTC. His short stories published in Trout Unlimited; Land of Waterfalls; Chattanooga Parent; and Religion and Spirituality are taken from experiences growing up in a small East Tennessee town and on a family farm (as well as an imagination that is at times far too active). His book Life: Through a Child’s Eyes was published in 2005.

2:00 Break for Birds of Prey Show

3:00 Finn Bille

3:15 Chrystina Jensen

3:30 Marcus Patrick Ellsworth – Spoken word artist, slam and performance poet, author of When the World was Round

4:00 Janie Watts Spartaro

4:20 Dr. Susan Hickman

4:40 Ray Zimmerman – Biography Above

5:00 Ginnie Strickland SamsGinnie Sams is a writer, a poet, a storyteller, and a lover of the arts. Personal family history provides Ginnie with material for her unique adventure stories and mid-life fairy tales. She has performed before audiences as far ranging as Zimbabwe and Costa Rica, and within the United States in Chattanooga TN, Atlanta GA, and Los Gatos CA.
Ginnie is well known in Trenton, GA as one of the original Trenton Beatnik poets. She reads her themed poems at a variety of Chattanooga poetry and music venues, including St Elmo’s Living Room, the now extinct Rockpoint Books, the Chattanooga Writers Guild, and the Audubon Bird Sancuary.
Ginnie lives in Rising Fawn with her calico cat Wootchie, but don’t you dare call her the cat lady.

5:30 Peggy Douglas
Peggy Douglas is a poet and performance artist, autoharp player, and Appalachian clogger. Her poems have appeared in Kakalak Anthology of Carolina Poets; Bleeding Heart Anthology of the Knoxville Writer's Guild; the University of Maine’s Binnacle Poetry Journal; Maypop: the Tennessee Writers Alliance Journal; Glass: A Journal of Poetry; The Light of Ordinary Things Anthology by Fearless Books; Chantarelle’s Notebook; Now & Then: The Appalachian Magazine; and Still: Literature of the Mountain South. Her chapbook, Twisted Roots, was published by Finishing Line Press in 2011 and she was a recent poetry finalist for the Still: Literature of the Mountain South literary contest.
Tom Brown, who plays banjo and harmonica will accompany her. Tom has played banjo and harmonica with several bluegrass groups over the years. He has injected a healthy dose of traditional bluegrass songs to the group's repertoire as well as his original compositions which he refers to as "slightly bent." He was selected in 2003, 2004, 2006 and again in 2007 for the ASCAP Sponsored Songwriter Showcase at the International Bluegrass Music Association's World of Bluegrass trade show. His songs have been recorded by Jeanette Williams, the Barker Brothers, Earl Brackin, and by the award winning Canadian bluegrass artist Janet McGarry.

Reading in Knoxville

Reading at a Senior Citizen center next Tuesday. Half of the audience will be younger than I am.

Our reading at Humana will take place this coming Tuesday, March 6 at 10 AM. Their community center is located at 4438 Western Avenue, 640 Plaza, Knoxville, TN 37921. The number for the center is 865-329-8892.

Little Owl Music and Arts

Press Release: February 15, 2012 - Chattanooga
Event: Little Owl Music & Arts Festival, March 31, 2012, 12 - 6 PM
Place: Audubon Acres, 900 N Sanctuary Rd, Chattanooga, Tennessee
Admission: $5 per person, or $10 per carload
Celebrate Audubon Acre's historic past & visionary future
at the March 31 Little Owl Music & Arts Festival from 12-6 p.m.
Join us for a fun field day for the entire family, including a flying show with raptors by SOAR (Save Our American Raptors) with owls, hawks, an eagle, vulture and other birds of prey for festival guests in the big field. We'll also feature some of the most treasured performing and visual artists in Chattanooga, such as Jerre Haskew of Cumberland Trio, Uncle Lightning, Ray Zimmerman, Marcus Ellsworth, Troy Underwood, Hara Paper and Jeff Pfitzer. We'll eat fun foods, witness a contest for songwriters, enjoy the work of local artists, go on nature walks, paint faces and decide a city-wide schools' poster contest, all cradled in the beauty of natural and historical surroundings. We want to share Audubon's unique role in the future, preserving our natural resources, history, and native plant and animal life.
History: Audubon has an established role in history as one of the oldest settlements in North America. The property is located on the Trail of Tears. It became one of the first land trusts in the State of Tennessee, called the Cherokee Arboretum where The Trail was developed to interpret the forest in the context of native American culture and regional history. Audubon's 130 acres gives visitors a glimpse into the life of the people who once lived, hunted, and gathered in the forests, meadows, and along the banks of South Chickamauga Creek.
Little Owl Village, our festival's namesake, is believed to be the location of the first contact between local Native Americans and Spanish explorers, consistent with the journal accounts of members of the Tristan de Luna expedition.
Mission: The Chattanooga Audubon Society was established to educate and promote an understanding of the responsibility borne by all individuals to preserve and protect our environmental, cultural, and historical resources. We're getting back to our roots in music, in the arts, in education, in becoming the hub of the East Brainerd community, inspiring the new generations to inspire us! Join us!
Celebrate Audubon Acres; it's your nature!
For more information, contact Audubon Society President Bill Fisher at 423-892-1499 or bfisher@chaas.org
Keep up with our performance event & featured artists and vendors on Facebook and Audubon's official website: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Little-Owl-Music-Arts-Festival-March-31-2012-Audubon-Acres/216298885129188?sk=wall&filter=1 & http://www.chattanoogaaudubon.org/

Little Owl Art and Music Festival

Tentative line up of performers for the porch stage.

March 31 12:00 Noon to 6:00 PM

Information about the various performances will be forthcoming.

NOON  Robin Burk
12:30 Jim Pfitzer (Awaiting confirmation on this)  
1pm Daryl Sutton and Melanie Sutton  
1:30 Michael Gray  
2PM Grant Fetters Horace the Hopper and Other Children's Stories  
2:30 Ginnie Strickland Sams  
3PM Bruce Majors -
3:30 Marcus Patrick Ellsworth
4PM Jack Pine Savage Stringband w/ Gilbert Sewell
4:30 Ray Zimmermaqn
5PM Bob Carty
5:30 Peggy Douglas

Romance at the Writers Guild

For Immediate Release
January 26, 2011

Romance writer gives hot tips – on the Craft of Writing - at the February meeting of the Chattanooga Writers Guild
February.14, 2012
7:00 PM
The Public Library, Downtown branch

This year, our regularly scheduled meeting falls on Valentine's day, so we just had to present a romance writer, but one who has published numerous titles and been a presenter a writers workshops across the nation. Elysa Hendricks. will speak on use of craft to create a compelling genre novel, including:
Plot basics (how to use "GMC" and "Scene and Sequel);
Characterization (back story, dialogue and point-of-view);
Mechanics and grammar;
the all-important concept of Voice.

Elysa's Bio:
After trying her hand at a variety of careers: retail sales, insurance underwriter, video store owner, home day care provider, and motherhood, Elysa Hendricks, a longtime reader of romance, sat down to write a short contemporary romance. When her heroine turned out to be a winged, telepathic alien, Elysa decided she enjoyed writing stories set in different places and times. Fortunately for the reading public, that first book remains hidden under her bed along with the evil killer dust bunnies.

While living in Illinois Elysa helped found the Windy City Chapter and the Futuristic, Fantasy & Paranormal Chapters of Romance Writers of America as well as taught workshops on writing at writer’s conferences and at local community colleges. Recently relocated to central Ohio, she’s happy to be part of the Central Ohio Fiction Writer family.

After spending some time (longer than she cares to remember or tell) learning how to write, she penned a series of fantasy romances set in an alternate universe. GEMINI MOON, CRYSTAL MOON, SHADOW MOON and FORBIDDEN MOON are available from ImaJinn Books.

THE BABY RACE, her first eBook, is a short contemporary love story set in the real world of small town America.- Race Reed doesn’t want a wife, but to save his ranch he needs a baby. To gain custody of her stepsister, Claire Jensen needs a husband, but she wants love. Wants and needs are bound to clash when they run THE BABY RACE.

THIS HEART FOR HIRE is the first of two western historical romances soon to be released. The companion book, previously published with Hard Shell Word Factory will be re-released in early 2012 under the title HER WILD TEXAS HEART.

Someday she dreams of sitting on a tropical beach, writing on a laptop, while handsome, bare chested cabana boys bring her fruity, alcoholic drinks.

The Word on the Bird

Ascension Lutheran Church
720 S Germantown Rd
Thursday, January 12, 2011
5:30 PM Executive Board Meeting
7:00 PM Monthly Meeting:

PROGRAM
Adventures with Audubon

Spend an hour in the studio of one of America’s greatest naturalists and wildlife artist. Listen to tales of his adventures as he finishes something no one had every accomplished before: drawing every bird in North America. Audubon will enchant you with stories of his travels and travails in the wildest places on the planet. He will celebrate the natural history of the North America as he saw it in the early 1800s. Audubon will bring to life bird behavior, focusing on the birds you are most likely to see as you go bird watching in your area. With lessons on field ecology, the scientific method, art history, and bird migration, the audience is invited to imitate birds and discuss the life histories of their favorite feathered friends.

Storyteller Brian “Fox” Ellis portrays Audubon in these entertaining and meticulously researched monologues drawing from Audubon’s journals, essays, and letters to his friends and colleagues. This program was developed with a grant from the USFWS as part of their celebration of the 100th anniversary of the National Wildlife Refuge System. Fox has performed as Audubon in museums, nature centers, birding festivals, schools and libraries across the United States, including Audubon’s home in Henderson, Kentucky.

Finn Bille's Fire Poems

Chattanooga Poet survives home fire, publishes Fire Poems book, and donates a portion of the proceeds to American Red Cross.

Out of the flames of his house fire Finn Bille created poetry and collected aid for other fire victims.

Bille’s recently published collection, Fire Poems, deals with the fire that destroyed his house at 504 Fort Wood Place in Chattanooga on March 18, 2003. He and his wife, Jeanne, had lived in the Fort Wood Historic District for 25 years.

A few of these poems were also published in 2011 in the anthology, Southern Light: Twelve Contemporary Southern Poets, Executive Editor, Ray Zimmerman.

The Red Cross assisted the Billes with necessary personal items, while the neighbors united to help them with housing, clothes, and support.

Bille’s advice: Do not leave oily rags where they can start a fire. Enclose them in airtight metal containers.

When you buy a copy of Fire Poems at Winder Binder Gallery and Book Store on Frazier Avenue in Chattanooga, two dollars will be donated to the Red Cross for aid to fire victims.