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Humaniverse
We must see the thing through our own eyes A pebble’s rippling song on pond Rock dropped upon potato bug When you tug at a single thing in nature You find it attached to every other Individualism has a cost You might as well sleep standing up.

Laura Sciortino Portland, Oregon
A Daughter’s Declaration
Ethiopia shackles your ankles. But mama, You ladle your boiling grief into my pores. I am not your vessel, Not a mirror to shatter, Not a pot to stain. I am your daughter.

Raine Ajani Portland, Oregon
Gingham
Dear hourglass, please fold the small minutes build a black hole for two hands bring now and someday together like corners of flannel sheets borrowed, gingham

M. Klein Vancouver, Washington
Yellowhammer
Two northern flickers landed on my suet feeder outside my window. Red and black spots and bib. I watched how each gripped the steel gazing at eachother like stars. One head bobbing to look at the other, two lovers drunk with seed and fat.

Sherri Levine Portland, Oregon
Becoming Ma’am
Married, 25, my ring, a shiny badge, A business suit like a costume, the winks from men in hotel bars. What did I understand about any of it? Alone, 50, the makeup girl Sees me, she’s steering me to the eyeliners popular with mature customers. My veins like snaking worms, Another younger coworker promoted faster.

Ally Hauser Vancouver, Washington
Some places call it kidnapping
They took her a mother, right off the street schoolkids watching, confused black masks, unmarked with guns, broad daylight like it was nothing, like nothing else they took our mother.

Shon-Lueiss Harris Vancouver, Washington
Lullaby
Leave your door ajar. Listen. Let mint, jasmine, and rose blossoms greet you today. Everything you discover—licorice ferns unwinding into a canopy for deer mice, Oregon juncos bathing in a rain puddle, Pacific wrens singing beside your sunlit path—will keep you company until sunset and another evening’s lullaby, this nightly hush.

Daphne Clifton Portland, Oregon
Bleach and buzz
Bleach and buzz for the summer, Evict winter, Reap dark thoughts and dark hair, Pregame sunlight, He can’t swallow a star, So he mimics one.

Alex Vigue Ridgefield, Washington
America Sentence Poem #14
Peace can slip into your doorway when you stop holding on to your war.

Jennifer Pratt-Walter Vancouver, Washington
America Sentence Poem #14
Peace can slip into your doorway when you stop holding on to your war.

Jennifer Pratt-Walter Vancouver, Washington
Yellow Will Bend the Meadow
You study its stillness—how the vine maple bleeds beyond russet. I point to the almost snowless face of Mount Hood and wonder what it has to do with the dying hemlock off the shoulder—needles suspended before dropping. It isn’t our faith that keeps forgetting, Love, the door to the valley is on fire. But beyond it is a prayer pushing through the soil like snowbrush.

Allisa Cherry Portland, Oregon

poetry Moves

A Moving experience

Over six million bus trips happen annually in our region — each one holding the possibility for more than just a commute. In collaboration with C-TRAN, Poetry Moves features poems by local, regional, and student poets on Clark County buses each year, offering moments of beauty and reflection to a diverse community of riders.

Group Photo of poets and attendees at Celebration of Poetry 2026
Recorded live at Magenta Theater in Downtown Vancouver on March 22, 2026.

SEASON 15 POETRY MOVES

Read Published Poems

Poems installed on C-Tran buses through September 2026

 

SEASON 16 POETRY MOVES

 

Call for Poetry Submissions

August 31, 2026: deadline to submit a poem

September 26, 2026: nine poems selected by juror

October 2026-September 2027: poems installed on C-Tran buses

 

Celebration of Poetry – Clark County Poet Laureate Inauguration 

April 11, 2027, 1-3 pm, at Magenta Theater

 

Inspired by New York City’s Poetry in Motion, Karen Madsen proposed a local version at an Artstra meeting in 2012. By 2015, she pitched the idea to C-Tran, who eagerly embraced it, and partnered with then Clark County Poet Laureate Christopher Luna to launch the program.

 

Today, Poetry Moves features local poets on every C-Tran bus. Luna and his partner, Toni Lumbrazo Luna—through their small press, Printed Matter Vancouver—were vital to the program’s first years, connecting with poets, mentoring writers, and serving as jurors for submissions through season five.

Addressing a Human Need

Each year, thousands of Clark County residents take more than six million bus trips. Within this daily rhythm of movement, Poetry Moves offers more than transportation—it offers nourishment for the spirit. Poetry has the power to inspire, comfort, and connect us, reminding riders that art is not reserved for galleries or stages but belongs to everyone, everywhere. By bringing the literary arts into public transit, the program transforms every C-Tran bus into a moving gallery, carrying words of joy, reflection, and hope throughout our community.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

Artstra wishes to thank the following organizations and individuals for their partnership and generous support of the Poetry Moves program:

  • C-Tran
  • Clark County Arts Commission
  • Magenta Theater
  • Christopher Luna, Clark County Poet Laureate, 2013-2017
  • Gwendolyn Morgan- Clark Co Poet Laureate, 2017-2020
  • Toni Lumbrazo Luna, co-founder of Printed Matter Vancouver
  • Armin Tolentino, Clark County Poet Laureate, 2020-2023
  • Susan Dingle, Clark County Poet Laureate, 2023-2026
  • City of Vancouver Washington
  • Community Foundation of Southwest Washington
  • Cameron Suttles, Technical Support
  • Cathy Thurber, Banner Furniture

POETRY MOVES SEASONS

Season 15

OCTOBER 2025

Laura Sciortino: Humaniverse

Raine Ajani: A Daughter’s Declaration

M. Klein: Gingham

Sherri Levine: Yellowhammer

Ally Hauser: Becoming Ma’am

Shon-Lueiss Harris: Some places call it kidnapping

Daphne Clifton: Lullaby

Alex Vigue: Bleach and Buzz

Jennifer Pratt-Walter: America Sentence Poem #14

Allisa Cherry – Yellow Will Bend the Meadow

Season 15 poem submissions were juried by Allisa Cherry.

OCTOBER 2024 – SEPTEMBER 2025

Jennifer Perrine: Sauvie Island Tanka
Amy Schutzer: Oh Daisies
Brandon Custy: Weight
Albert Haley: Ode To Gravel
C. A. Corbell: A present from Apollo
Joe Poulton: Untitled
Daphne Clifton: Reverie
stephanie spencer: Hua Hin Morning
Elmo Shade: Midnight In Montgomery

Robert Lashley

Season 14 poem submissions were juried by Robert Lashley, 2016 Jack Straw Fellow.

OCTOBER 2023 – SEPTEMBER 2024

Laurie Cutter: Cherish
Em Gallup: Alberta St
Tanya Gipson: It can wait, they won’t
Sherri Levine: Bending Down
Brittany Mishra: Post-Covid Sijo
Claudia Saleeby Savage: Mammal
Marcia Smith: Haiku #1
Stephanie Spencer: Cat’s Lament
Louise Wynn: Beach Trip
Bethany Kim-Yin: one year reflections

Season 13 poem submissions were juried by Arianne True, Washington State Poet Laureate 2023-2025.

OCTOBER 2022 – SEPTEMBER 2023

Teresa Anderson: Last Dance
Sossity Chiricuzio: Lessons I’m learning From My Garden
Genevieve DeGuzman: Shape Shift
Betty Fullard-Leo: Transient Ambitions
Julianne Hudson: Backyard Observances
Jody Katopothis: Friendship
Dvora Robinson: Powell Butte
Raúl Sánchez, City of Redmond Poet Laureate 2019-2021: Longing
Monika Spykerman: Octopus
Anand Tawker, Avian Guru

Season 12 poem submissions were juried by Raúl Sánchez, City of Redmond Poet Laureate 2019-2021.

OCTOBER 2021 – SEPTEMBER 2022

Margaret Chula: Affinity
Daphne Clifton: A River’s Voices
Paulann Petersen: Footprints
Rena Priest, Washington State Poet Laureate: A Map of the Universe
Gay Garland Reed: Cloud-wisp Patterns
Stephanie Spencer: Transition
Armin Tolentino, Clark County Poet Laureate: Squid Jigging Midnight
Emmett Wheatfall: Catch and Release
Christine Lamb White: Shorthand
Elizabeth Wood, Trance

Season 11 poem submissions were juried by Thabiti Lewis, Ph.D., Professor of English and Associate Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs at Washington State University Vancouver.

OCTOBER 2020 – SEPTEMBER 2021

Tiel Aisha Ansari: The Name for This Season
Genevieve DeGuzman: Love as a Bee Sting
Tanna Engdahl: Gaining Time
Hillary M. Marshall: Mornings
Madeline Martin: Seeker
Dave R. Muñoz: Haiku for Grandpa
Álvaro Tarragó: Doors and Mirrors
Anand Tawker: Poetry Matters
Armin Tolentino: Half a Sonnet Stepping Into Tomorrow
Emmett Wheatfall: Only You

Season 10 poems highlight the diversity of voices among ten local area poets invited by Artstra to offer short poems to share with the riding public.

JANUARY – SEPTEMBER 2020

Ian Caton: Soft Serve
Lisa Demoreno: Earthworm
Leigh Hancock: Saudades
Rainy Knight: Grasshoppers
Claudia Castro Luna: Recipe
Toni Lumbrazo Luna: Write Yourself a Love Poem
Robin O’Brien: At the Station
Jennifer Pratt-Walter: Life Soup
Stephanie Spencer: Stopping Time
Terry Vetter: Old Man

Artstra’s 2020 Celebration of Poetry set for National Poetry Month will be rescheduled for a later date to help slow the spread of the coronavirus disease.

JULY – DECEMBER 2019

Layali U. (Grade 4): Fox
Nafisa U. (Grade 2): Cats
Lyla B. (Grade 3): Fern
Mikaylee F. (Grade 9): Bus Dogs
Natalie W. (Grade 4): Give Some Kind
Anna C. (Grade 2): In My Basket
Madeline C. (Grade 12): Frog’s Song
Cass K. (Grade 4): Kindness is a Match
Emmy P. (Kindergarten): Moose Wearing a Tie
Gwendolyn Morgan (Clark County Poet Laureate, 2018-2020): Honeybee Haiku

JANUARY – JUNE 2019

Suzann M. Baldwin: Untitled
an’ya Bartolovic: Old Memories
D.H. Carol: Hole
Laurie Cutter: Wildflowers
Lauren Duquette: I remember
David Hubka: Soaked
Holly Miller: Historical Disaster
Gay Garland Reed: Queen Anne’s Lace
Jacob Salzer: Untitled
Mark Sargent: note to the letter carrier
Melissa Clarke Ward: Untitled

JULY – DECEMBER 2018

Annie S. (Grade 3): Ode to Summer
Christina S. (Grade 12): How the Phoenix Flies
Christina S. (Grade 12): Strangers
Ella J. (Grade 4): Across the River
Grace W. (Grade 5): To be a Book in 20168
Hanna P. (Grade 5): The Butterfly that Stands Out
Lillianna K. (Grade 5): Land of Magic
Margaret H. (Grade 4): The Beach
Noah S. (Grade 5): Spaceships
Nyomi S. (Grade 4): Snowy Mountains

Season 6 and 7 poets honored at Artstra’s 2019 Celebration of Poetry

JANUARY – JUNE 2018

April Bullard: Reflections
Diane Cammer: Elevate the Floor
Denise Campbell: One Heart’s Desire (excerpt)
Stella Jeng Guillory: In A Pow Wow
Jennifer Pratt-Walter: At Home
Pat Sciuchetti: Time
Gary F. Suda: Daybreak
Susan Williams: Bus Stop
Angela Winfield: In-Between
Louise Wynn: Who Rides?

JULY – DECEMBER 2017

James B. (Grade 4): North Carolina
Gavin B. (Grade 4) Arizona
Brooklyn C. (Grade 2): Picture of Your Heart
Ellie G. (Grade 8): If
Allison K. Grade 5): The Way Earth Is
Kaylee K. (Grade 5): Lady of the Sea
Berenice L. (Grade 6): My Loving Prince
Jacob R. (Grade 8): The Right Way
Johanny S. (Grade 6): Book
Christina S. (Grade 11): We’ll Remember These Days

JANUARY – JUNE 2017

Cherish DesRochers-Vafeados: Joy
Bruce D. Hall: A Long Ago Memory of Calmer Times
Christopher Luna: pavement pastoral
Bill Lucking: Subsequent Layers of Existence
Tod Marshall: With Apologies to Andre Breton (excerpt)
Livia Montana: Why We Don’t Belong Here (excerpt)
Gwendolyn Morgan: Hope, embossed
Angeline Nguyen: Eulogies Are for the Living
Bridget Nutting: Just Breathe
Jennifer Pratt-Walter: Calling
Alex Vigue: Camilla
Desiree Wright: how to love (excerpt)

JULY – DECEMBER 2016

Colwyn B. (Grade 9): A Candle, A Light Bulb, A Glowing Fire
Elora H. (Grade 6): Still I Rise
Ashley S. (Grade 10): Don’t Be Afraid
Jaden L. (Grade 7): From the Airplane
Andrew H. (Grade 9): Ego Poem
Marley J. (Grade 4): Space
Rheanna N. (Grade 9): Slowly Sinking
Emma L. (Grade 10): Stoney Surprise
Breanna K. (Grade 3): Snow
Jessica K. (Grade 9): Love

JANUARY – JUNE 2016

Neil Aitken: Extern (excerpt)
Tiffany Burba-Schramm: Everything Settles
Diane M. Cammer: We could fly
Sherri H. Hoffman: Pilgrimage, 1988
Erin Iwata: Ours (excerpt)
Tim Klein: Counterpart
Christopher Luna: Ghost Town, USA (excerpt)
Toni Partington: Honeycomb Prophecy
Jennifer Pratt-Walter: Journey
Karen Read: Fourth Plain Boulevard

Read poems from all 14 seasons (PDF)