The road wound through rolling wheat fields, past single farmhouses sheltered by a few trees. I thought about the kind of hearty people who farm here, and Marge Piercy’s poem “To Be Of Use” came to mind.

Day 4 of my road trip: Odessa, Washington. I visited classes in the town’s school, then had the pleasure of reading with Spokane poet Daniel Butterworth at the Odessa library that evening. Check out Dan’s new collection, The Clouds of Lucca.