"Always maintain a kind of Summer, even in the middle of Winter."

~ Henry David Thoreau

Poet, professor, and gardener Stan Galloway takes Thoreau's sentiments to heart in his beautiful poem, "Winter Garden," which is just out now as a limited edition letterpress broadside from St Brigid Press. Savor these selected lines:

clouds purple where dusk and storm meet                                       glazed December snow pellets

I take the box from under the stairs                                               partial packets of last year's seeds

without a shovel or a line of string                                           start to garden, finger each envelope...

Galloway goes on to describe different kinds of seeds in this poem-dream, which inspired the Press' Emily Hancock to conjure them from carved blocks, then illumine them by hand-watercoloring each one.

The result is a lovely collaboration of word and image. Hancock hand-set the poem, letter by letter, in the historic Koch-Antiqua typeface, then printed poem and carving in dark grey ink on fawn-colored Stonehenge paper.

Last weekend, we were thrilled to be a part of the Bridgewater International Poetry Festival. Galloway, the festival's organizer, debuted the poem and broadside to the gathered on the first evening.

Each print, one of a limited edition of 80, is hand-numbered, double-matted with archival mats, backed with archival board, and safely encased in a clear archival bag. To read the poem in its entirety, scroll to the bottom of this page. To order, visit our secure online Store.

Warm your winter days with a print of Galloway's poem; let it dream you toward the light, the rising life, of spring.

All best to all,

St Brigid Press

THE POEM: