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Biblion to host poet Elisabeth Stoner for MERR benefit book signing Dec. 16

At the corner of Second and Market Streets in downtown Lewes
December 13, 2017

Biblion sits at the corner of Second and Market Streets in downtown Lewes with large picture windows to watch the town amble by. Imagine glancing through them to see a tiny slip of a woman, defying the coastal winds by leaning into her cane as she makes her way down the middle of the street with a giant stuffed dolphin and bag of books in tow.

This is Elizabeth Stoner. Anyone who has attended a MERR (Marine Education Research and Rehabilitation) Institute event will recognize her - both for her signature dolphin as well as her bright eyes, sharp wit, and fierce dedication to their cause to protect sea mammals. "Please allow me to correct you, dear," she counseled to biblion's owner, Jen Mason, when she mentioned her own love of MERR, "It's pronounced 'mair,' for the French word for the sea."

“Ms. Elisabeth” is picky about words because she is a poet. Her latest collection, Watermark, is being sold as a benefit for the institute. She will be signing copies at biblion, used books & and rare finds, 205 Second St., Lewes, Saturday, Dec. 16, starting at 11 a.m. "I can't set an end time," said Ms. Elisabeth. "I'm in my mid-eighties, and I just don't know how long I'll last. I could just up and die in the middle of it all! Wouldn't that be exciting?"

Rather than sending the typical CV in preparation for this article, Ms. Elisabeth shared one of her most recent poems (a collaborative effort with her acupuncturist, Lauren Mund), which is apt:

 

In This Coda of My Life

I

Oh, my friends,

In this coda of my life,

I am vanishing.

When I was young and beautiful,

I measured five feet, seven inches tall.

Today, my height is a mere five feet---if that.

I have weighed more than 160 pounds

When carrying an incipient being inside me---

Now I weigh 120 pounds---if that.

I tell you, I am vanishing!

As my physical disappears,

As I shed that impediment, that restriction,

My more airy parts seem to be expanding.

Now, I carry fledgling, incipient, magical ideas within me.

I tell you, this is joy!

My feet have never been well attached to earth.

Now, as I stagger and wobble even more,

The space between this world and me

Increases daily---by tens of feet.

I am becoming immaterial.

I lift off.

I transform into aery heaven.

II

Lauren says my pulses are full---

My yin and yang are separating,

Which is normal and to be expected at my age.

The only cure would be to become young again.

That I do not desire, despite what promises youth might offer.

My yin contains yang like a nest contains a bird.

My wondrous bird is perched at the edge, flapping its wings.

This situation is natural, inborn, primal.

My pulses now are fully floating

Like water pushing to burst a dam.

When the dam breaks, the birds fly.

The water flows out to be reabsorbed by earth and sky.

The eternal cycle of which we are all a part.

When my yin and yang finally separate,

I--- as you have come to know me---

Shall have departed this sphere.

Meanwhile, take my hand and love me.

Be with me as we complete this curious chapter

Of our mysterious time together here on earth.

---Elisabeth Stoner and Lauren Mund

Fall 2017

 

Biblion is open daily from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Copies of this and several other local author offerings are available year-round. For more information, call 302-644-2210, or go to BiblionBooks.com.

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