Sonoma County Literary Update

Dear Literary Folk,

Remembering Phyllis Meshulam
It is with great sadness that I share with you the news that Phyllis Meshulam passed away on Sunday, March 29, after several years facing, with grace and courage, a debilitating neurological disease. I have known Phyllis for almost three decades, as a colleague with the California Poets in the Schools Program, as a participant in many workshops at the Sitting Room, as a fellow poet and traveler, and as a friend.

A long-time resident of Sonoma County, Phyllis published five books and chapbooks of poetry, including Land of My Father’s War (Cherry Grove Collections, 2019), which won the Artists’ Embassy International Award; and most recently (Re)Creations , published by Kelsay Books in 2025. Joy Harjo, U.S. Poet Laureate, said of Land of My Father’s War, an “urgency of spirit has emerged eloquently here in these poems of perception and even prophecy. . . .” And Maxine Hong Kingston said of (Re)Creations,”O Hope! The Poet can create our world again. Phyllis Meshulam breaks apart the old memes/archetypes/ stories and re-tells them. And we—her readers and listeners—can make our lives on this earth anew.

In addition to her books, Phyllis’s poems have appeared in many literary journals and anthologies, including Ars Medica,; Bullets into Bells; Veterans of War, Veterans of Peace; and What Redwoods Know. Phyllis is also the editor of Poetry Crossing, CalPoet’s 50th anniversary lesson plan book, an inspirational resource for writers and teachers.

For more than thirty years, Phyllis was an active participant in the Veterans Writing Group convened by Maxine Hong Kingston, and a poet-teacher with CalPoets, giving presentations at the nation-wide writing conferences, AWP and Split This Rock.

As our Sonoma County Poet Laureate from 2020-2022, Phyllis guided us in her steady way through the shelter-in-place and social distancing of Covid-19. She offered online workshops, video poetry writing lessons, and brought together voices from across the county and beyond in her poet laureate project, the anthology called Freedom of New Beginnings—all of this while facing the challenge of her newly diagnosed illness.

Phyllis was a shining light in our literary community, especially her work with young writers in the CalPoets program, the Poetry Out Loud Program, and many events her students participated in, including the Petaluma Poetry Walk and the Poetry of Remembrance Community Reading. She reached diverse communities through her teaching and writing, from residents at Napa State Hospital, veterans, preschoolers, and English language learners. The legacy of her teaching and her poetry is imbued with her passion for justice, sensitivity, and inclusiveness.

Besides the many conferences, local readings and literary events, book launches, and conversations we shared on long drives or over lunch at the Redwood Grill, I had the great good fortune to travel with Phyllis and her husband Jerry on two writing-travel trips to Ireland and Wales. I will remember most about those journeys the moments when we wrote and read together in places that rang deep with the voices of the poets whose work we were studying, especially W.B. Yeats and Dylan Thomas. On one particular afternoon, we were driving the hills of Carmarthenshire, searching for Fern Hill, the family farm of Dylan Thomas’s Aunt Annie and Uncle Jim, which the poet immortalized in his poem by that name. Our group of writer-travelers stood outside the gates of the old farm house at the foot of Fern Hill, while Phyllis led us in taking turns reading stanzas of Thomas’s ode to childhood. The photos included here are of Fern Hill and the farmhouse (taken by Jerry Meshulam), the reading at the gate, and Jerry and Phyllis with the guidebook that led us there.

 

Here is what some of her colleagues on the Poet Laureate Selection Committee had to say about Phyllis’s legacy.

“Hard to believe I first met her nearly thirty years ago when she was training to be a poet-teacher. I’ll remember her as an outwardly quiet and calm soul who fiercely and persistently voiced her love for the world through poetry and activism.”
—Arthur Dawson

“Phyllis has walked into challenging situations where she [felt] poetry [could] make the heart stronger. When schools were closed during the 2017 fires, she took the initiative to lead poetry classes for children at the synagogue Congregation Shomrei Torah on Bennett Valley Road, Santa Rosa.”
—Maya Khosla

“It’s a sad day. Phyllis has helped so many young people onto the path of poetry and deep creativity as well as writing and working to make our world a better place.”
—Clara Rosemarda

“Phyllis was a warm, kind, and yes, quiet yet profound poetic voice in our community. I will miss her soft wisdom which I fortunately had the benefit of receiving when I helped her with one of her PL projects.”
—Kim Hester-Williams

“Phyllis was a quiet storm in Sonoma County’s poetry world — a hard worker for so many years. A true gift.”
—Katharine Hastings

For Phyllis
Your life was integral to the world of rising light
to scores of young voices at their Poetry Crossing
To the first fresh words they learned to pen down,
To the journeys they will continue long after you
have slipped quietly away, dew disappearing
with the advance of day.
—Maya Khosla

To honor Phyllis’ legacy, I have included her poem “Goddess’s Dream” from (Re)Creations at the end of this post.

Welcome and Thanks to Our SCLU Volunteers
I would like to extend a warm welcome to the Sonoma County Literary Update’s two new volunteers: Ann Hutchinson, who is helping with technical tasks; and Amy Whitcomb, who is helping with research. Amy will be collecting information for the calendar and workshops pages for the next issue, and will help update some pages that are out of date. 

All of us have for many years been indebted to Jo-Anne Rosen, who does all the work of compiling, editing, and sending out the Literary Update each month. I contribute a monthly post, which creates the illusion that the Update is a result of my efforts. As Jo-Anne trains our volunteers and begins to step back from some of her many tasks, I hope you will take a moment to let her know how important her work has been to you and the literary community. None of this could happen without her. You can contact her at editor@socolitupdate.com

Nominations Still Open for Sonoma County Poet Laureate 2026-2028
Sebastopol Center for the Arts is still welcoming nominations for our next Sonoma County Poet Laureate. Do you have someone in mind you think would make a good literary ambassador for our county? Have you thought about stepping up to serve in this role yourself? Give this some consideration and check with the SebArts website for details, qualifications, and nomination form. The deadline is April 17, 2026.

West Side Stories
In a conversation last month with journalist Beulah Vega, she recommended stepping out of my familiar poetry and fiction venues and discovering other audiences and authors, especially spoken word and performance artists. So a few weeks ago, I decided to find out what goes on at West Side Stories, held monthly in Petaluma at the Polly Klass Center.

Every month there is a theme. Storytellers put their names in a hat, and ten people’s names are drawn at random. Participants then have five minutes to tell a personal true story. At the end of the evening, everyone votes by text for their favorite of the night. The winner gets $50. The series is curated by Dave Pokorny, who opens the evening with his own story on the month’s theme.

On the night I attended, Wednesday, March 11, the theme was “Don’t Quit Your Day Job.” We heard a story about a journalist who had been writing for Sports Illustrated, but turned to driving delivery for Amazon when he was laid off. There was a woman whose mother was having such a good time in her memory-care facility that the daughter began to wonder if she, too, could quit her day job, maybe even develop dementia, or at least make a convincing case. The evening’s winning storyteller was Ben Bourdon, whose tale “Being a Benjamin: Unexpected Wisdom from a Homeless Shelter Blogger” was both humorous and tender its portrayal of the clients he had assisted in their various states of disability. That homeless shelter blogger had told him that his name Benjamin meant “the son of my right hand,” meaning a helper: “Your job and your life is to assist other people, to help them live their best life,” the old man explained, and that’s what Ben has been doing the last 22 years.

If you’d like to read the winning story and/or listen to the article in which it is featured, you can find it online on the Argus Courier website: petalumanews.com/2026/03/20/being-a-benjamin-unexpected-wisdom-from-a-homeless-shelter-blogger/

I’ve been giving a shout-out and spotlighting West Side Stories for years now, but until that evening, I’d never attended. I highly recommend it! But keep in mind, this venue gets a packed audience, so if you’d like to attend, be sure to get tickets in advance: Details and ticket ($21.50): davepokornypresents.com/west-side-stories

The next West Side Stories will be on Wednesday, April 8, 7:30 p.m. April’s theme is “Too Many Irons in the Fire.”

Here are the themes for the next few months:
May 20: Good Things Come to Those Who Wait
June 10: If It Ain’t Broke
July 8: Money Talks
August 12: Hang in There
September 9: It’s Not Rocket Science
October 14: It Take Two
November 11: Grit
December 9: All’s Well That Ends Well

National Poetry Month Turns 30!
April is National Poetry Month, which turns thirty this year. Launched by the Academy of American Poets in 1996, National Poetry Month has grown into the largest literary celebration in the world. For three decades, it has created opportunities to read, share, and experience poetry—at home, in classrooms, in libraries and bookstores, and online—affirming poetry’s place as a vital part of our culture. To check out ways that you can celebrate, here’s the website for the Academy: poets.org/national-poetry-month-turns-30-join-celebration-april.

• Read a new poem each day to discover different styles and voices.
• Attend local poetry readings or open mic events to experience live performances
• Write your own poems to express your thoughts and feelings creatively
• Share your favorite poems on social media to inspire others.
• Explore poetry anthologies or collections to broaden your literary horizons.
• Join a poetry workshop or class to enhance your writing skills and connect with fellow poets.

And check out some of the wonderful readings, events and workshops here and near Sonoma County.

Favorite Poems Reading and Benefit for Sebastopol Center for the Arts
Founded by Robert Pinsky, who served as U.S. Poet Laureate from 1997 to 2000, the Favorite Poems Readings have been a fun way to celebrate National Poetry Month. This month, on Sunday, April 19, 3:00-5:00 p.m, our Sonoma County poet laureate, Dave Seter, will lead an inspiring afternoon of poetry, tea, and cookies with shared voices and meaningful connections. Join us for a heartwarming afternoon celebrating the power of poetry, benefiting SebArts’ Literary Arts Program. Your ticket includes a beautifully handmade ceramic mug from our ceramic studio! Sliding Scale: $35/$45/$55. More details and tickets: sebarts.org/classeslectures/p/favorite-poems-with-dave-seter

Other Events Around the County
Saturday, April 4, 3:30 p.m. Found Poets! At the Big Easy in Petaluma. bigeasypetaluma.com/event/found-poets-poetry-month-featuring-bernice-espinoza

Saturday, April 11, 2:00-3:30 p.m. Celebrate National Poetry Month with Sonoma County authors at Santa Rosa Northwest Library: events.sonomalibrary.org/event/poetry-reading-106400

Sunday, April 12, 3:00-5:00 p.m. Occidental Center for the Arts Literary Series celebrates National Poetry Month: occidentalcenterforthearts.org

Sunday, April 19, 1:00 p.m. Sixteen Rivers Press North Bay Book Launch at Book Passage in Corte Madera: bookpassage.com/event/sixteen-rivers-press-north-bay-book-launch-2026-corte-madera-store

And there’s much more! Check out the Calendar page for a more complete list of April readings and events, and the County News page for other announcements.

____

Poem for April
This month’s poem is the sonnet “Goddess’s Dream,” by Phyllis Meshulam, the opening poem in her collection (Re)Creations. The YouTube link is a recording of the poem set to music, composed by Brent Hitman.

youtube.com/shorts/n11emTGNQJ0

Goddess’s Dream
by Phyllis Meshulam

The black new moon of my belly is set
in a crescent of shine, and from it
a boy, a girl will soon come forth,
more or less in my image, of course.

They now are fish-like; may they always recall
their slick gill-slits. Come their time to crawl
may they be tutored by beetles and moles.
Their time to run, likewise by deer and a foal.

May my daughter grow strong as my son
never shoved from her place in the sun.
For I have dreamed of weeping women
and deadly warriors, and have seen

the universe split open, crack into stars:
into Venus, teardrop, blood-drop of Mars.

____

Send Us Your Poetry/Short Prose Selections
Two years ago, I began featuring a different Sonoma County writer each month at the end of the Literary Update Post. Here’s how to participate.

The theme can be anything you feel is appropriate to the season. I’ve adjusted the subject line, so you won’t feel limited to sending lineated verse. In fact, prose poems, flash fiction, creative nonfiction are all welcome, as long as the piece you send is no more than a page in length.

Send your submission to me at tehret99@comcast.net, with “SCLU Poem/Prose of the Month” in the subject heading.

Send me just one submission, no more than a page (or less). Be patient, as I sometimes have a backlog of poems I’ve selected to publish.

These can be previously published, provided you identify the publishing source. If the piece is not your own, provide the author’s name and source. The author should be a Sonoma County voice, and if contemporary, please ask the author’s permission to submit.

Deadline: You can send the submission any time during the month, but I’ll need to receive your submission a few days before the month’s end to give me time to read, make my choice, and contact the author of the piece selected.

Terry Ehret, co-editor
Sonoma County Literary Update