August and Fiesta Come to a Close

 Melinda Palacio, Santa Barbara Poet Laureate 2023-2025

 

Vienna Cervantes, Julia Temler, Elise Swanson Ochoa, Justin Young

Melinda Palacio, Marcelo Gonzales, Colin Hayward, Father Larry, Leslie Lund 

 

 It's hard to believe that August is almost over. The month flew by, beginning with Fiesta in Santa Barbara. I had flamenco performances and attended even more performances and participated in the parade. Several friends celebrated birthdays, including my sister Emily, whose birthday was overshadowed by a death in the family. Sedano had a birthday, my father had a birthday. Florencia had a birthday. But grief has a sobering way of commanding the moment. I also lost a dear friend in New Orleans. And the world lost Dolly Parton. What I wanted to share here was the Inaugural Fiesta Poetry Competition in Santa Barbara that took place during Fiesta, the first week of August. It was fun being a judge in this inaugural contest.

Earlier this month, the winners of the inaugural Old Spanish Days Fiesta Poetry competition were announced on the steps of the Santa Barbara Public Library in front of the artwork Tympanum. I was one of the judges and noted the diverse perspective of the poems. The winning poems in three categories, Adult, Teen, and Youth, say so much about how Santa Barbara encourages and promotes diversity within its artistic and cultural institutions. Colin Hayward, 2026 Fiesta El Presidente said he wanted to create a bigger tent for Old Spanish Days. Not only is poetry now a part of Fiesta, but Old Spanish Days has another first, a Fiesta Poet Laureate, Father Larry Gosselin.

Adult Winner, Elise Swanson Ochoa’s poem, “Ode to Old Spanish Days,” is a history lesson on her Swedish and Mexican heritage, seen through the lens of Fiesta. Elise is an optometrist in Goleta who started taking poetry classes through adult ed in 2018. The runner up, Justen Young is a musician and his poem was sparse compared to Elise’s long, expansive poem. Young says he hears the poem as a song and there’s a musicality to his title, “Shakers.”

It was a pleasure meeting the Teen Winner, Marcelo Gonzales because his family is steeped in Fiesta given his brother is this year’s Spirit of Fiesta Runner Up. Since I started learning Flamenco, I have seen Emilio dance at the Historical Museum several times. He and his parents, Rosa and Robert, were proud to see Marcelo win for his poem, “A Fiesta Day Never to Forget.” Marcelo says his brother’s dancing inspired his prose poem and its celebratory feel. The Teen Runner Up, Jacob John was unable to attend the ceremony.

Youth Winner, Vienna Cervantes and Runner Up, Julia Temler wrote sophisticated poems for being the youngest poets to compete. It may have taken 103 years, but adding poetry to the Old Spanish Days Fiesta festivities is a boon for everyone. 

 

*part of this column was previously published in the SB Independent