Words on the Wind
The Poetry Pole & Wind Phone in Wippel Park
Two features in Wippel Park in West Ellensburg, WA
The Poetry Pole
The poetry pole is a cedar post carved with the word POETRY on the east and west sides where people come to pin poems to the pole and read poems left there by others. After time in the weather, the poems are put in a place of safekeeping.
The first poetry pole was imagined by Jim Bodeen of Blue Begonia Press in 1996 in Yakima after he visited Pablo Neruda’s home in Chile where people leave poetry on the fence posts. That poetry pole has collected thousands of poems and is now outside the home of Dan and Amy Peters in Selah, WA. Jim said of the poetry pole:
“Planted in an out-of-the-way place, the poetry pole is a source of truth. Poems here are written directly to the muse without editors intervening...
Poetry poles are places to share spiritual insights, longings, and truth.”
Ellensburg's own poetry pole was planted on August 27, 2023, in Wippel Park at 400 N. Elliott St.
The pole is home in the Heritage Native Pollinator Garden created by The Morning Rotary Club. You can find labels as well as a plant list on site.
Pin your poems.
There is room on the poetry pole for everybody.
The Wind Phone
The wind phone was first imagined in Japan by Itaru Sasaki in 2010 when he placed an unconnected rotary phone in his garden to help him cope with the death of his cousin: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wind_phone
Sasaki stated: "Because my thoughts couldn't be relayed over a regular phone line, I wanted them to be carried on the wind." Sasaki's wind phone was visited by thousands after the tsunami in 2011, when thousands died and were unaccounted for. Hear the This American Life radio story about the original wind phone, here.
Now, hundreds of wind phones have been installed around the world: www.mywindphone.com
The wind phone has no religious connotation—it helps us carry our grief with all its complexity as time passes. It gives us permission to say what we hold in our hearts. It is a purposeful place.
As Ellensburg is known for its wind, the wind phone complements the poetry pole: The pole and the wind phone are broad invitations to connect something within to something outside of ourselves.
The wind phone was installed on May 26, 2024. Special thanks to Chris Schambacher for his collaboration, coaching, and skill.
“May the sore well of grief turn into a seamless flow of presence.” - John O’Donohue
Those who visit these places are connected by their humanity and their search for the words.
The relocated Downtown Community Garden and the Heritage Native Pollinator Garden are also in Wippel Park.
The park has become a beautiful, reawakened place our community can enjoy for field trips, walks, readings, workshops, or picnics.
Visit Wippel Park to send your words on the wind.
Follow the social media pages linked below to follow the pole and phone.
Write us a note, send a poem for us to pin to the poetry pole, and find our address if you prefer to mail us a poem, here.
You can also request digital versions of our poetry pole flyers or bookmarks (we have English and Spanish) if you would like to print and share those with your circles.
A huge thank you to the City of Ellensburg's Parks and Recreation Commission, the Community Garden of Wippel Park, Morning Rotary's Heritage Native Pollinator Plant Garden group, the City Council, and the Ellensburg Arts Commission for their support of these projects. A special thank you to the Wippel Family for donating this land for a city park.
We acknowledge the people who have been on this land since time immemorial. These lands were ceded by the Pshwanapum and other bands and tribes of the Yakama Nation in the Treaty of 1855. The Yakama people remain committed stewards of this land, cherishing it and protecting it, as instructed by elders through generations. We are honored and grateful to live on their traditional lands and give thanks to the legacy of the original people, their lives, and their descendants.
Deepest gratitude to Jim Bodeen (original Keeper of the Pole), Dan Peters (current Keeper of the original Pole in Selah), and to Chris Schambacher for such benevolent support in the creation of these projects. Thank you to my family for their wholehearted support, patience, and faith.