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The Soul of a Poet Peggy Stortz A l t h o u g h R u s s e l l T h o r n t o n has lived i n faraway places - M o n t r e a l , Wales, Greece - a n d traveled extensively, the spirit o f N o r t h V a n c o u v e r was always near. " M y w h o l e life, I've had i n m y head the b e l l o w i n g s o f foghorns from ships o n B u r r a r d Inlet, the cries o f seagulls as they c o m e up f r o m the inlet t h r o u g h c l o u d s , the m i l l i o n different sounds o f the r a i n . " Water, the essential element in m a n y o f his poems, represents the soul or the u n c o n s c i o u s aspects o f the m i n d . "In the deep-cut s w e r v i n g ravine/ the h o u r before d a w n . C r e e k m o r e spirit than water/ p o u r i n g w h i t e d o w n the b o u l d e r y creek p a t h / at arm's length t o w a r d me and past." ( H e r o n from House Built of Ruin). In the same anthology, i n a p o e m called Sun Shower, he writes, " O n e sudden suspended r a i n d r o p , / a lens m a g n i f y i n g the air at all angles,/ is the silent storyteller o f this p l a c e . " Influenced by his maternal grandmother, T h o r n t o n developed an early a p p r e c i a t i o n for poetry. H e began w r i t i n g poems as a c h i l d . " F o r me, poetry is stored m a g i c , " he says. " G r e a t poems fill y o u w i t h the spirit o f deep a w e , and they can change y o u , over a n d over a g a i n . " T h o r n t o n ' s poems are s t u n n i n g , m o v i n g , and richly sensuous - the k i n d of w r i t i n g that makes one pause to w o n d e r w h a t p o w e r f u l muse sits by his side w h e n he puts pen to paper. H i s w o r d s lie gently o n the page and take the reader o n a journey i n t o the soul o f a prostitute o r innocent c h i l d , a s m o k y bar o r ancient c h u r c h , even into the very spirit o f the E a r t h rivers, trees, m o u n t a i n s , fields o f g r a i n . A n d w i t h each line, he reveals a n o t h e r fragment o f his o w n s o u l . WHO: Russell Thornton. Poet. Author of 4 books, and 2005 Winner of Don S. Williams Cash Award WHAT: House Built of Rain WHERE: Book by Thornton are available @ 32 Books in Edgemont Village and at Indigo Books. CONTACT: www.harbourpublishing.com www.seraphimeditions.com/russell.html. 20 November | December or " F o r me, the natural w o r l d is like a host o f forces-spirits. It's a transformat i o n a l w o r l d that invites certain categories o f inner experience. It's elemental and d y n a m i c , full o f epiphanic movement and change a n d , whether or not you're aware of it d o i n g so, it moves t h r o u g h y o u . " A t the recent F A N S event, Russell T h o r n t o n was h o n o u r e d w i t h the D o n S. W i l l i a m s C a s h A w a r d . O n receiving the a w a r d he said that poetry resides o n the fringe o f the arts. Perhaps w i t h this r e c o g n i t i o n , it w i l l move a little closer to the centre.