Forward

Poets write to express thoughts, to share experiences and to reveal emotions. They write of the beauty they see around them. They write of love as they feel it and they write of the moment as they live it. Many write for themselves and for those who care to share these parts of life the way they experience them.

Poetry is a way of trying to find and make sense of the meaning of life. It is a way to share what we are experiencing. It can be feelings; it can be an event; it can be an insight.

The poem gives us permission to stretch our imaginations. It allows us to float with the evening breezes at sunset; it allows us to remember past moments that have changed our lives and it allows us to get in touch with things that are important to us. A poet chooses words carefully to involve the reader in using the five senses to understand the feelings surrounding an experience or the impact of an event. Each of us has a poem within waiting to be.

In the spirit of sharing our journey towards literacy and in the celebration of World Literacy Day, September 6, 2002, we the staff and students of the Literacy Program, SIAST Kelsey Campus, Saskatoon, SK offer this anthology of poetry, We Search for the Words.

These are our words, our thoughts and our dreams. We wish to share them with you.

Larry Crook