Virginia Lowe joins Poetry from Daily Life Free Video Library

Hi everyone,

Today I introduce VIRGINIA LOWE with the 60th artist recording on Poetry from Daily Life Free Video Library. Here’s the link to her column, which appeared in the newspaper series on March 10, 2025. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y5Bh69YvoV0&t=9s

Virginia lives in Melbourne, Australia. Dr. Lowe says she has always written, from editing newsletters and maintaining a monthly blog, to her Favorite genre, writing poetry. Her husband, John, is a poet too. A Favorite activity has been teaching a U3A (University of the Third Age) creative writing group. One unique fact about Virginia is that she studied her two children’s development and responses to books from infancy to early adolescence. Her research, including 5,500 pages of notes, became part of her studies for a Ph.D.

My thanks to Virginia for becoming a permanent part of Poetry from Daily Life Free Video Library. For those who would like to see the final collection, here is the link. It has been a long journey to reach this announcement today. Thanks to all who have taken the trip with me. https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC5wGqp5vbw2K0N7cFcGwN5w The library has been visited more than 2,200 times, including more than 120 views of my introduction that were lost during the posting of these final eight. The goal is to share the library wherever there is an interest in poetry and the people who write the poems or use them in their lives.

Amos Bridges on Poetry from Daily Life Free Video Library

Hi everyone,

None of this — the 101 weekly columns carried in six newspapers in three states with 105,000+ subscribers, the recordings of sixty of the columns to form a free video library available around the world — none of it could have happened without this man. AMOS BRIDGES lives in Springfield, Missouri. where he serves the Springfield News-Leader as Editor-in-Chief. It was he who gave this column the green light in the fall of 2023.

AMOS is, of course, a fine journalist. When he accepted my invitations to write two columns for Poetry from Daily Life, I knew he would be well worth reading. This one, his second — https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L8KuNGz-fj8 — has been added to the video library. I hope you will take a few minutes to listen to what he has to say. You’ll be glad you did. Amos, thanks for it all.

Once again, here is the link to the complete library. https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC5wGqp5vbw2K0N7cFcGwN5w

Bob Stephens returns to Poetry from Daily Life Free Video Library

Hi everyone,

Friend and colleague BOB STEPHENS joined Poetry from Daily Life Free Video Library with his second recording. His first column in the newspaper series was on January 14, 2024, his second, on September 14, 2025. Now both are preserved in the free video library. Here is the link to Bob’s second recording. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FiozrJKN1l0

Bob Stephens lives in Springfield, Missouri and was mayor of the city from 2012-2017. Bob is a man of many talents and writing poetry is one of them. He combined his passion for poetry with his organizational skills to form The Bards of Moon City, a group of local poets, and book them to give poetry readings all over town, in April (National Poetry Month) and any other time an audience gathers. He has authored two books of political essays, published a poetry chapbook, co-authored a book of poetry with Lora Knight, published a memoir entitled Accidental Odysseys, and is currently editing his fourth poetry anthology by the Bards of Moon City.

To visit the complete library of 60 recordings, here is the link. https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC5wGqp5vbw2K0N7cFcGwN5w

Lola Haskins returns to Poetry from Daily Life Free Video Library

Hi everyone,

More good news. LOLA HASKINS has been added to Poetry from Daily Life Free Video Library with her second recorded column. Here’s the link. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v16gU2k7gRo

Lola, who lives in Gainesville, Florida, traces her love of poetry to when she discovered AA Milne at the age of four. She’s never looked back since. Her latest collection, Homelight (Charlotte Lit Press, 2023), was named Poetry Book of the Year by Southern Literary Review and shortlisted for the Hoffer Prize. Lola walks in the woods every day and owes a lot to trees. She has collaborated with dancers, visual artists and musicians, and sings mariachi and Hindu classical music. I’m delighted to welcome her back to the video library for her second appearance. Thank you, Lola!

For those of you who would like to visit the whole 60-voice library, here’s the link to that. https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC5wGqp5vbw2K0N7cFcGwN5w

Maryfrances Wagner returns to Poetry from Daily Life Free Video

Hi everyone,

I’m pleased to tell you that among the final eight recordings to complete the poetry video library is a second essay by MARYFRANCES WAGNER who, among many other accomplishments, served as Missouri’s 6th Poet Laureate. Here is the link to her spot in the library. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wbm-X1kSxEQ

Maryfrances lives in the Greater Kansas City Area. Her first column in the series, Poetry from Daily Life, appeared on November 19, 2023 in Springfield News-Leader and other newspapers in three states. Her second came out on December 23, 2024.

Maryfrances began writing poems as an 8^th grader and today writes mainly poetry and some essays. Among books she enjoyed writing are The Immigrants’ New Camera and Solving for X. Her latest book (2025) is a collection of stories about her students and is called Backstories.  A unique fact about Maryfrances Wagner is that she has been hit by a car, not once but twice, while crossing the street!

To access all 60 recordings in Poetry from Daily Life Free Video Library, here is the link. https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC5wGqp5vbw2K0N7cFcGwN5w