April is National Poetry Month and to celebrate both poets and poetry, I pulled from my bookshelves some of my favorite local or regional poets’ volumes of poetry to share with you. You may not have heard of some of these poets because many do not have the notoriety of Sonia Sanchez or Nikki Giovanni. But in the southwest region, they are loved. So I present to you (drum roll please) “One Poet — One Line,” poets and one line from one of their treasured poems. Enjoy!

My hair has many blues like inner city streets, yet it thrives like ghetto hymns, never facing defeat” —Che’

“I am that which is good and positive tempered with my own humanity” — Herman Wilson II

“Down in the dumps is not my home Good-bye old friend; I’m moving on” — Doris House Rice

“Death came to remind me that earth has no sorrow that heaven can’t heal” — Evelyn Dees Kelly

“With strings and borrowed trumpets their genius reigned despite denial, bringing the world jazz” — Lisa Brown Ross

“The forecast in my eyes is rain pouring, from seeing the blue oceans through the lens of past happy days” —Pari Danian

“Life is a canvas waiting to be painted by the colors of our own choosing” — Irene P. Zucker

“Thank God it’s not just me, or eventually I would fall” — Pam Fields

“The beauty of giving Is to give from the heart” — Le’Juana Searcy

“Set your Self and your Spirit free; Give your Self permission just to ‘be'” — Martha Switzer

“If my tears can wash away your ignorance, I’ll cry you a river!” — Nichole L. Shields

“It’s past time We live past our feelings…Put aside our petty differences Reach out to each other in love.” — Jeanetta Britt

“With each morning comes a new day – a new chance to make peace with the world and all its people.” — Hugh M. Bouvier

“Pain wore her face like a road map…” — Quraysh Ali

“Put faith before doubt. For everything in life will work out.” — Sharon Jones-Scaife

“I am of no color For in many eyes I do not exist” — Katherine Smith

“How ya livin’, depends on the choices you make, how ya livin’, depends on what you ask for when you pray.” —Rudy V