South Country Fair Poem by Melvina Germain

Truly it is difficult for me to find the words to give true justice to this amazing event. South Country Fair for me was almost like an out of body experience. The diverse poetic delight created an atmosphere of intoxicating awareness of energy that flowed
from poet to poet.

It was captivating, fun, loving, peaceful. Everyone had a smile on their faces, all sat quietly, feasting on the words of those who took to the stage to read their precious poems. From the soft, mesmerising words of Ian Ferrier, the wonderful chanting blended
with layers of musical tones from Moe Clark to the western flair of Ken Sears, the quiet, beautiful words of Kathy Fisher to the strong and powerful Andy Papadoupolous, the real life poetry of David Rhoads, the energizing words of Dale Heatherington. the amazing
witty and creative words of Gregory Betts. A special mention of Blaine Greenwood whose heartfelt words touched my soul. I was Blessed to be among the greats and I thank God for this opportunity. You never cease to amaze me Father.

The winds of Fort Macleod blew cold on Friday evening and my friend Shelley and I shivered as we listened to each poet read while trying to keep their papers in place. None the less, an amazing round of poetry to be sure. Oh yes it was a harsh first night and we were concerned about the weather. The following day however granted us an abundance of sunshine and we had a full and blessed day of poetry. The last day was amazing for me, I had what I was waiting for, an opportunity to read on the big stage. Truly I'll never forget the experience, certainly a highlight in my life. Poetry is taking me to places I could never have imagined and those I meet along this journey
inspires me to continue to write and become better and better. I thankyou Father with all my heart for this gift of pen.

This has been a great few months of poetry for me, having had the opportunity to help out at the workshops at the Drop-In Centre, reading at different events around town and receiving an
invitation to read at South Country Fair. I want to thank Dale Heatherington for his continued support and certainly I appreciate the work Dale is doing at the Drop-in Centre. David Rhoads, you have come a long way my friend, I'm so so proud of you. Andy Papadoupolous, so glad we met and I so enjoy your poetry. Looking forward to seeing all of you at the Drop-In Centre.

A special thanks to Blaine Greenwood for giving me the opportunity to read at South Country Fair, much appreciated Blaine.